Leah Carter’s Point of View
Caleb’s eyes were still black when the last torch in the hall flickered out. No one breathed, even Kael stood frozen, his muscles coiled tight, eyes glowing gold in the half-light.
Then, slowly, the darkness drained from Caleb’s gaze. He blinked hard and gasped as if surfacing from deep water, sweat glistened on his brow, and the black veins that had spread across his chest began to fade.
Kael motioned to the healers. “Take him to the recovery chamber, guard him, no one enters without my order.”
They obeyed quickly, carrying Caleb away, but even after the doors closed, the chill he’d left behind remained.
I turned to Kael. “He’s not himself, Kael, that thing, Varul, he’s inside his head.”
Kael’s jaw tightened. “Then we find a way to drive him out before he
