Victory tasted bitter with betrayal lingering in every breath.
Twenty-four hours after collapsing, I was finally cleared to leave the medical facility. My body protested every movement, exhaustion still weighing me down despite the enforced rest. But my consciousness was stable, my wolf essence controlled, my human awareness firmly restored.
Darius walked beside me, moving just as carefully. His injuries were healing but not healed. Both of us were alive through capabilities we barely understood and couldn't safely replicate. The partnership that saved us had also nearly destroyed us.
Through our bond, his presence remained constant—protective and concerned. But underneath those surface emotions ran something deeper: pride, desire, admiration for his mate who'd risked everything, who'd unleashed power that terrified even our allies, who'd fought beside him until consciousness failed.
