Evaline:
My knees gave out beneath me. I would have hit the ground had Kieran not caught me, pulling me against his chest. But even his warmth couldn't reach me. It felt like someone had dug a hole in the center of my chest and scooped everything out - heart, soul, breath, life... all gone.
"Evaline, sweetheart, breathe… please breathe," Kieran whispered into my hair, but I couldn't.
How was I supposed to breathe when Draven wasn't... at least not like I wanted him to?
The world blurred around me. I couldn't hear, couldn't think... just the sound of my pulse roaring in my ears, and the unbearable stillness of the man on the bed.
He looked so peaceful. So still. Too still. His chest rose and fell only faintly... the healers' powers keeping his body alive... but his soul… it was gone. I didn't need anyone to confirm it, I could feel it. The bond that once burned so fiercely between us now hung by a thread, cold and faint, like the last flicker of a dying star.
