VALERIE
When bonds break, they don’t shatter like glass.
They tear like flesh.
Slow. Painful. And alive.
I felt the distance growing like rot in the walls. No matter how many times they knocked, waited, or begged—I didn’t answer. I couldn’t. Something inside me had turned to stone. Not rage, not sorrow, just… stillness. Cold.
She didn’t look at me the way she used to. Not like I was her anchor. Not even like I was familiar. Just... a shadow. “I don’t know how to reach her,” I said to Jason and Dorian as we gathered in the strategy hall. “I don’t even think she wants to be reached.” “She’s grieving,” Dorian muttered. “She’s changing,” I corrected. “And we’re not part of that process anymore.” Jason kicked the base of the map stand. “Then we’re already losing.” I didn't say what we were
