Alina’s pulse still rattled from the memory of Kael’s shadowed claim, her body tingling as if electricity had settled beneath her skin. She adjusted the sleeve over her mark, feeling the faint hum that never fully left her, even when she tried to ignore it. The Veil had always been present, but lately, it felt different. Hungrier. Attentive in a way that was unnerving, almost sentient. And she was at the center of it, as if its threads curled specifically toward her.
Kael’s presence pressed against her side, warm and relentless. He didn’t move first, didn’t speak, letting the quiet stretch between them, letting her notice the subtle pull of shadow along her skin.
“You feel its focus, don’t you?” he said finally, voice low but precise. “It isn’t random, Alina. It’s drawn to what you carr
