KAEL'S POV
Her words still burn in the air.
He's mine. And I'll burn the whole world before I let them take him back.
I should feel relieved. Gratitude. Some twisted form of triumph. Instead, all I feel is the ache of her grip against my arm and the weight of every blade pointed at me—even if lowered, they're waiting. Watching.
They're not wrong.
The abyss didn't leave me. Not entirely. It clings in the quiet places—behind my ribs, at the back of my skull, in the tremor of my claws as they flex against my thigh. My fire doesn't just blaze gold now. It flickers darker in the edges, a shadow threaded through flame.
And they see it.
The soldiers think I'm a weapon waiting to snap. Cassia looks at me as if weighing whether to kill me now or wait until I prove her right.
Only Ayla looks at me as though I'm still worth holding. Still worth saving.
