The palace had started breathing differently since the king's verdict. Every corridor felt wider, every shadow deeper, every echo of bootsteps sharper. The bond roared through me now, a golden current that never quite settled, always humming with Nalia's presence even when he was on the other side of the keep. It should have felt like strength. Instead it felt like carrying ten heartbeats in my chest, ten separate fears, ten different hungers, all pulling in different directions while I tried to stand still enough to hold them together.
I hated how much I needed it.
