8. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Evelyn

L ight brushed against Evelyn like the gleam of a full moon.

Pearly, powerful, and tender. Her heart reached for the light—farther, farther, farther—until it grasped its source… another heart, so like her own.

Kade.

She whispered his name into the nothingness where she floated, her mind, her subconscious elsewhere, somewhere—she didn’t care. Her fated was near. She could feel him.

Kade.

Her magic and their bond no longer hit against a mental brick wall. No steely cage. The bracelets were gone. How or when, Evelyn didn’t know. Exhaustion still gripped her body, and the unknown plane of existence where she floated held her firm, the tug, tug, tug of her werewolf growing stronger.

Evelyn!

Panic laced Kade’s beautiful, gruff voice. Hope swelled through her—he’d heard her at this distance.

Evelyn! Are you alright? Where are you? Love, talk to me.

She couldn’t recall where she was last. Drystan, yes, but where? Black stone flashed through her mind. A villain, a tall, stoic villain standing over her. One made of stone. One she no longer had to fear. It was the unknown that frightened her. The truth of her enemy she had yet to discover.

Evelyn!

Her subconscious snapped to attention. She missed his voice. His touch. His amber eyes. Her heart, her flame brushed against his mind. The moon and sun danced together. Slowly, closely. Her mind cried tears of joy. Evelyn couldn’t fracture this peace.

Kade, I’m alright.

Silence stretched, but their connection didn’t falter. There was a tug, a sense of desperation pulsing down their bond. Did he hear the lie in her words?

I’m in Drystan. Are you safe?

Fear spiked, and flashes of red bloomed in the darkness. Where was he?

Kade!

Yes, yes, I’m safe.

Evelyn relaxed, her heart pulsing with relief. She sighed and held onto Kade, the strength of their bond grounding her.

Evelyn, I need you to hold on a little longer. I can feel our connection fading. It’s probably the distance. Where in Drystan are you? What has Riven done?

Her other senses fought against the bond, against her subconscious floating. The elsewhere she’d found began to fade.

Kade…

She didn’t want to lose him—not the peace she’d found amidst the darkness.

Evelyn!

Kade’s cry filled with anguish, and Evelyn’s heart ached with it.

I miss you. I love you. The castle. A tower.

She rushed the words over the bond. Light—not Kade’s—brightened against Evelyn’s mind. The light had sound, like the sudden whistle of an oncoming hard and violent storm, sucking away Kade’s presence. As their connection drifted, waves and tides pulled them farther and farther apart, her fated’s last words shouting into oblivion.

Hold on, Evelyn. I’m coming for you. I’m coming.