Chapter 1
Bree
Sleep isn’t happening.
I’ve tried every position, counted sheep, even attempted some deep breathing thing Theo taught me once. Nothing works. Every time I close my eyes, my brain cycles through everything—what happened with Thane in the garden, Theo’s panicked vision, the way he looked so shaken. And poor Seth caught in the middle of it all.
I should have found Theo when I came back inside. Should have made sure he was okay. But by the time Thane and I… by the time we came back from the garden, he was nowhere to be found, and asking the others felt like admitting I’d failed him somehow.
So now I’m lying here replaying the way Thane’s hands felt on my skin. The way he said my name when his fangs found my throat. The way the bond snapped into place between us, silver and warm and permanent.
Like forever. That kind of permanent.
And the way I walked away from Theo when he needed me, because apparently I’m excellent at letting people down.
What are the others going to think? The thought hits me like ice water. I spent years pushing them all away, convincing myself it was safer for everyone if I kept my distance. Then I finally let them close, and the first thing I do is… this. With Thane. With someone who was supposed to be watching me for the Council.
Did I just screw up everything we were building here? Everything I thought we were building?
My chest tightens. Will they think I chose him over them? Will they decide this is too complicated, too messy, too much? Maybe this will be the thing that finally makes them walk away.
I press my palms against my eyes, trying to stop the spiral. But the fear sits there, cold and familiar.
You don’t have to be whole to be worthy of being seen.
Theo’s words from the living room float back to me. When everything had just fallen apart and I thought I’d lost them all. When he looked at me like I mattered, broken pieces and all.
I have to believe they’ll stick around no matter who I end up with. I have to believe that what we’ve built together is stronger than my fears.
Even if I’m not sure I believe it yet.
I roll over for the hundredth time, burying my face in pillows that smell like lavender and starlight. The sanctuary bedroom should feel like peace—with its curved walls and silver script that pulses gently in the moonlight streaming through the dome above. Everything here was built for comfort.
Instead, I feel like I’m vibrating out of my skin.
That’s when I notice it.
The mirror from the garden sits on the bedside table where I left it before crawling into bed. The same twisted silver frame with spirals and curves that flow into sharp points like horns or antlers. The surface that drinks light instead of reflecting it properly, ancient and hungry.
I should leave it alone. After what I saw earlier—my eyes glowing red, then going completely black. Both Seth and Thane seemed uneasy about it too. I should probably throw the damn thing out a window.
Instead, I reach for it.
The metal is warm under my fingers, and I can’t tell if that’s from my own body heat or something else entirely. Something that makes my pulse quicken.
My reflection stares back, all messy hair and wide eyes. Pretty standard post-crisis look for me. But as I tilt it to catch the moonlight, something shifts.
The surface ripples.
I blink hard, wondering if I’m finally losing it. But when I look again, I’m not seeing myself anymore.
I’m seeing the corridor from earlier.
The scene plays out in perfect detail, but from an angle I never had. I watch myself move toward Thane, silver mist trailing behind me like a living thing. But there are details I missed—the way the Ether reaches for him before I’m even close, wrapping around his boots like it’s claiming territory.
And his face when he thinks I’m not looking. Less controlled. More raw.
Like he’s seeing something he wants and dreads in equal measure.
