Kael moved swiftly through the dark corridors of the cave, his senses tuned to every sound, every shift in the air. He could hear her heart beating—faint, but steady—guiding him deeper into the shadows. Marcus had made a grave mistake taking her. He would pay for that.
He wouldn't stop until Lyra was back with him, safe. Safe, the word twisted bitterly in his mind. He had been the one to hurt her first, hadn't he? He couldn't deny the truth of that, not now, not when everything between them had become so tangled.
The moment he found her, Kael's breath caught in his throat. Lyra was there, chained to the wall, her body slumped in exhaustion, her skin pale under the dim light of the torches. The sight of her—broken, vulnerable—sent a surge of rage through him.
He reached her in seconds, kneeling beside her, his hands working to free the heavy chains. "Lyra," he whispered, urgency in his voice. "I've got you."
