POV: Kael
I stood outside the ritual circle long after Aria had gone. The clearing was empty now, the moonlight no longer warm, but cold and indifferent. My hands were clenched at my sides, and I couldn’t stop the question from spiraling in my head:
What if I couldn’t save her?
What if I never could?
The moment the Echo Bride looked through Aria’s eyes and spoke with her voice, I knew something had changed. Not just inside Aria—but inside me. A thread pulled taut somewhere between my soul and the bond snapped under pressure I hadn’t seen coming.
It wasn’t just fear I felt.
It was dread.
I turned away from the stone glade, my steps echoing through the silence. The pack had left in hushed groups, some glancing back at the circle like it might reach out and devour them. The council off
