Kael's POV
I’m losing her. Day by day, hour by hour, she’s slipping further away from me, into some place where nothing I do can reach her. The bond between us grows stronger on my end; I can feel every nuance of her emotions, every flicker of trepidation or sadness that crosses her mind. But from her end, there’s nothing. Just empty gratefulness and hollow compliance.
We reach an inn at the edge of town, and the woman behind the counter looks back and forth between the two of us. Elara is waiting by the door like a well-trained pet.
“One room or two?” the innkeeper asks.
I always say one, but tonight—tonight I say, “Two.”
I feel the way Elara stiffens behind me, and then there is a sharp wave of grief and resignation through the mate bond. I’m about to turn to her, needing to know wh
