Later that night ,
Kieran stands in his room, staring out the window into the dark expanse of the woods.
His hands are clenched behind his back, tension radiating through every muscle.
The moon casts a pale light over the treetops, but it brings him no comfort.
Ace hasn't returned.
That fact gnaws at him more than he wants to admit. Could he have gone to Xiao Jun?! He wonders.
He's used to feeling Ace—his emotions, his presence, the pull and faint scents even when they were miles apart.
It was like a thread tying them together, unbreakable despite his efforts to ignore it.
But now, there's nothing. He can't feel or sense a thing about Ace.
It's not just that Ace isn't nearby.
It's the silence, the emptiness where the bond used to hum faintly at the edge of his mind.
Not even his wolf complaining, demanding Ace. It's as quiet as never and that just make Kieran even more restless.
