Chapter Twenty-Nine
It started with silence.
Not the unnatural stillness of the sky. Not the oppressive quiet of the Shadow’s presence.
Just absence.
Cain woke before dawn, as he always did.
But the bond was dim.
Not gone.
Just distant.
He sat up immediately.
Lyra was asleep across the hall — he could feel her faintly. Elias was somewhere below in the eastern wing.
Everything was where it should be.
And yet something inside him felt… unanchored.
He rose and dressed without sound.
Outside, the stronghold moved normally. Guards changed shifts. Training began. Wolves greeted him with the usual nods of respect.
Nothing was wrong.
That was the problem.
He walked the perimeter twice.
Nothing.
He inspected the western wall.
Nothing.
He sparred with two warriors in the yard — h
