Kael's POV
I felt it before I saw anything.
The same pulse as earlier, except it was faint now but still there, like something that hadn't fully settled, a bruise beneath the skin that was fading but not gone.
I pushed the door open, every sense sharpening immediately.
Warm air greeted me, thick with coffee and cinnamon, while voices blended into a hum, punctuated by the clatter of mugs and the hiss of steam. On the surface everything looked ordinary, comfortable, and safe.
Except it wasn't.
My eyes swept the room and catalogued it quickly.
Ryker by the wall, arms crossed, jaw tight, eyes hard on a fixed point.
Ayla was behind the counter, face carefully composed, hands moving with mechanical steadiness.
The space between them felt wrong. The tension was tight in a way that had no
