KAEL'S POV
Ayla's claws pressed into Cassia's throat, black fire creeping up her arm like veins of molten stone. The shadows around her writhed and hissed, urging her to crush, to end, to claim.
Her words weren't hers. They were the Hollow's. If I kill her, I'll be free.
My chest ripped with a snarl. "No—you'll be a prisoner forever. That's not freedom!"
Cassia's legs kicked, her voice cracking through the choke. "Kael! Help me—gods, she'll kill me—"
I ignored her. I couldn't look at Cassia. This wasn't about her. It was about Ayla.
I pressed my forehead against Ayla's burned wrist, forcing myself closer despite the searing pain. "Ayla. Look at me. Not the shadows. Not her. Me."
Her eyes flickered, gray trying to push through the black. A tremor rippled across her face. "It… hurts."
"I know." My voice broke. "Then give it to me. Give me the pain. Give me everything. Don't let it take you."
Her grip loosened—barely. Just enough that Cassia wheezed in a lungful of air.
