Chapter 10: The Venom of Jealousy

The silent war continued. Silver’s presence became a ghost in the machinery of my life. The “coincidences” stopped. No more mysterious favors, no more anonymous guardians smoothing my path. It was as if my cold dismissal that morning had finally gotten through to him. The shadow that had been dogging my steps receded, leaving behind only the constant, aching hum of the bond and a strange, unsettling emptiness. I told myself it was a victory. Freedom, at last. But the silence felt less...