Page 30

Kaia

The morning is too bright.

It shouldn’t bother me. The sanctuary’s halls are always bathed in soft golden light filtering through enchanted crystals embedded in the walls. But today it feels harsh, intrusive, like it’s trying to scrape me awake when my mind is still tangled in dream-smoke and shadows that won’t let go.

I don’t remember falling asleep again after the nightmare, but when I finally pry my eyes open, Finn’s arm is draped across my waist like he’s afraid I might disappear.

His warmth is steady, his breathing slow and even against my neck.

My shadows drift around the room—twice as many as when I first stepped into this cursed realm.

Bob notices my attention and immediately starts herding the smaller ones into formation like a drill sergeant with unruly recruits.

As if military precision will solve anything.

For a few heartbeats, I let myself stay here. Let myself breathe. Let myself pretend the world isn’t unraveling faster than I can hold it together.

Then the ache in my chest pulses, sharp and demanding, dragging me back to reality .

The dream. The missing bond. The stranger with storm-cloud eyes who felt like coming home and losing everything all at once.

I press my fingers against my sternum, willing the hollow space inside me to stop bleeding . But whoever he is, wherever he is, he felt it too. I know it like I know my own heartbeat. Like I know the exact moment each of my other bonds snapped into place.

He’s out there, waiting.

And I don’t know if I’m supposed to find him, or if he’s already hunting me.

Finn stirs beside me, letting out a low groan before his grip tightens around my waist.

“Five more minutes,” he mumbles into my shoulder. “Or twenty. Maybe forever.”

I snort despite myself. “Planning to become one with the mattress?”

“Not my fault you’re perfect for cuddling,” he mutters, lips brushing against my neck in a way that sends heat curling down my spine. For a moment, I let myself sink into the sensation, eyes fluttering closed as warmth spreads through me like honey.

But then reality crashes back—the ache in my chest flaring, guilt twisting my stomach at enjoying this when someone else is waiting for me in whatever void dreams are made of.

Finn must feel me tense because he sighs against my skin and pulls back. “Right. Functioning adults. I keep forgetting.”

“We’ve never been functioning adults,” I point out, grateful for his easy reading of my mood.

He grins, stretching as he rolls out of bed. “Come on, Trouble. Let’s see if breakfast comes with less existential crisis today. ”

Highly doubtful.

But I get up anyway, pulling on leather pants that fit too well to be coincidence and ignoring the way my shadows seem more agitated than usual. Carl actually salutes me as we pass, while Mouse circles Finn like a suspicious chaperone.

The dining hall buzzes with morning energy when we arrive.

Long tables stretch across the room, filled with warriors and scholars and people who look like they actually got sleep.

The air is thick with roasted meat and fresh bread, but my stomach churns, still twisted up in dream-fragments and missing pieces.

Aspen and Torric sit rigid as statues, their eyes tracking my approach. Malrik lounges beside them with studied casualness, though the tension in his silver gaze tells me he’s still processing last night’s revelations.

Finn drops into his seat with his usual sprawl of limbs. I slide in next to him, forcing myself to focus on tea and normalcy and anything but the way my chest feels like it’s caving in.

Then the room shifts .

Conversation doesn’t stop, exactly, but it changes pitch. A collective intake of breath, like the hall itself is bracing for impact.

I glance up—and freeze.

Mira glides through the crowd like she owns every inch of stone beneath her feet. Confident. Poised. Making a beeline straight for Kieran.

I don’t react.

Not at first.

Kieran’s eyes find mine for a heartbeat before shifting to the woman approaching him. Something sharp coils in my stomach when she stops beside him, resting her hand on his arm with casual possessiveness .

He barely acknowledges her initially, but when she leans in close, murmuring something meant only for his ears, his mouth curves into a slow smirk.

Something inside me cracks .

I don’t understand the feeling, not entirely. It’s not like I haven’t seen people flirt with him before. We’re bonded by force and circumstance, nothing more.

Except apparently, I do care.

Mira’s laugh is soft and knowing, her fingers trailing down his forearm. She presses closer, claiming space I didn’t even know I wanted to protect.

Something ugly and possessive sparks in my chest.

Not the bond. Not magic. Something rawer.

Finn’s fork scrapes porcelain as he leans in, voice dropping conspiratorially. “Uh-oh.”

I exhale sharply, forcing my gaze back to my tea. “What?”

His grin is pure delight. “You jealous, Trouble?”

I scoff. “Of Mira ? Please.”

“Sure.” He props his chin on his hand, watching me like I’m the most entertaining thing he’s seen all week. “So that white-knuckle grip on your cup? That’s just… enthusiasm for breakfast?”

I flex my fingers, realizing I’m moments from shattering ceramic. “I don’t care what Kieran does.”

Finn hums like he’s never heard a bigger lie.

I try to ignore it. Try to ignore the way my shadows are coiling tighter, the way Bob is radiating disapproval toward Kieran and Mira, the way Patricia’s frantic note-taking has turned sharp and aggressive.

I’m fine .

Absolutely fine.

Except when Mira laughs again, her palm pressing flat against Kieran’s chest, I am absolutely, definitively, not fine.

The sharp clink of my cup hitting the table echoes across our section.

Malrik’s knowing gaze finds mine. Aspen and Torric both tense, attention bouncing between me and the scene unfolding across the room.

Finn just leans closer, voice rich with teasing delight.

“Kaia, darling—” His smirk widens. “You look ready to commit murder.”

I grit my teeth. “I’m not.”

He gestures toward where Mira is now trailing her nails down Kieran’s forearm. “Uh-huh. And that’s what—performance art?”

My shadows bristle.

Fine. Maybe I’m not fine.

But I’m not jealous.

I just really, really don’t like her.

I don’t notice at first when my shadows begin moving. I’m too busy glaring at my tea like it holds the secrets of self-control. They slip away from me, purposeful and silent, not the usual emotional flickering but something with intent .

The hall gradually quiets as people notice.

I’m still contemplating my beverage when Finn makes a strangled sound beside me.

“Oh my gods ,” he wheezes, shoulders shaking with laughter. “Kaia, you absolute legend.”

I frown. “ What?”

Aspen sits frozen, fork halfway to his mouth, eyes wide. Torric sets his cup down like he’s defusing a bomb. Malrik just sighs and takes another sip of coffee.

“What the hell—” Mira’s voice cuts through the room, sharp with indignation. “Some kind of shadow parade?”

I look up.

And oh .

Two perfect columns of my shadows are marching through the crowd like they’re on military parade. Bob leads one formation, Linda commands the other, both moving with the grim determination of soldiers on a sacred mission.

They reach Mira before I can process what’s happening.

Without hesitation, they lift her straight off the ground.

Mira lets out an undignified squawk , arms windmilling as shadows hoist her into the air. The entire dining hall falls silent.

She blinks, clearly not comprehending. “Excuse me?!” she sputters, still not taking it seriously. “If you wanted me gone, you could have just asked .”

Finn collapses against me, tears streaming down his face. “This is the greatest moment of my entire life.”

Mira starts struggling in earnest, but my shadows don’t falter. They carry her through the room with perfect coordination, past gaping warriors and stunned onlookers, straight toward the exit. Bob and Linda working in flawless synchronization like they’ve drilled this exact scenario.

Dead silence.

Malrik sets down his cup with deliberate calm. “She should feel honored,” he observes, completely deadpan. “They don’t usually provide personal escort service. ”

Torric coughs to hide a laugh. Aspen just drags his hands down his face.

Finn wipes tears from his eyes, still wheezing with laughter. "Survival Tip #4," he manages between gasps. "If Bob disapproves, you're probably about to die or fall in love. Possibly both."

I open my mouth to deny involvement, but Finn beats me to it.

“Your jealousy is showing , Trouble.”

I glare at him. “I’m not jealous.”

He points toward where Mira is actively cursing out my shadows as they cart her through the doorway. “Right. Total coincidence.”

I stare into my tea like it might offer absolution. “No idea what you mean.”

Kieran’s voice carries across the room, entirely too amused. “Definitely not jealous at all.”

From the hallway: “KAIA, CALL THEM OFF!”

I take a deliberate sip of tea, refusing to look up.

“Must be talking to someone else.”