I wake with a sharp inhale, like I’ve been dropped back into my body instead of gently returning to it, and for a second, everything feels… lighter.
My eyes flutter open slowly, blinking against the pale morning light spilling through the curtains. There’s a strange, unfamiliar spark sitting in my chest—motivation. Determination.
It burns even though—even though the emptiness is still there.
My hand drifts to my chest, fingers pressing lightly as if I can feel the absence of my wolf, my strength, that constant hum of power that used to live under my skin. My lips part slightly, a faint, broken exhale slipping out.
Goddess, I feel weak.
Not just physically—though that’s there too—but something deeper. Something hollow that no amount of rest seems to touch.
But then I picture Keal’s fa
