Chapter 11: The Choice in the Blood

The days after our confrontation were a frozen wasteland. The bond between us felt like a bridge of ice, brittle and silent. The usual three-day cycle came and went without a visit from Kael. The absence of pain was its own kind of agony—a confirmation that he had withdrawn completely, perhaps finally accepting the chasm I had carved between us with my accusations. My words, “Was any of it real?”seemed to have frozen him out. Elara stayed close, a worried shadow. The threat of the cleansing...