"Better?" James asked, his fingers tracing lazy patterns on my bare shoulder.
"Mm." I pressed a kiss to his chest. "Much better."
"Good." He pulled me closer, tucking me against his side like I belonged there. Like I'd always belonged there. "You scared me. In that hallway."
"I scared myself."
"Don't do that again." His voice was light, but I heard the fear underneath. "Fall apart all you need to. Just... let me be there when you do."
I tilted my head up to look at him. His face was soft in the morning light, younger than he usually seemed. Vulnerable in a way he rarely let anyone see.
"I will," I said. "I promise."
He kissed my forehead. Let his lips linger.
"So," he said eventually. "Tell me what happened."
"He shifted again and he remembers a little, Cal, that’s his name. Cal... something. The rest is gone."
“Cal, that suits him.”
"And there are others. On the mountain. His pack." I closed my eyes, letting the memory of Cal's voice wash over me. The grief. The guilt. "He got lost. Couldn’t find his way back."
"How many?"
"He doesn't know. Four? Five? He can barely remember."
James was quiet for a moment. I felt him thinking through the bond — not the specific thoughts, but the quality of them. Careful. Strategic.
"We'll need help," he said finally. "We can't do this alone."
"I know."
"Rae?"
"Maybe. Probably." I sighed. "She's not going to like it."
"No," James agreed. "She's not."
We lay in silence for a while. The morning light grew brighter, creeping across the floor toward the bed. Somewhere in the building, doors opened and closed. Voices murmured. The world kept turning.
"I should get up," I said eventually. "Classes."
"You should sleep."
"I can't. If I miss another day, Twilson will—"
"Twilson can wait." James's arms tightened around me. "One morning. Give yourself one morning. The world won't end."
I wanted to argue. Should have argued. There were things to do, plans to make, a rescue mission that was already taking shape in the back of my mind.
But my body was heavy with exhaustion, and James was warm, and the bond was quiet for the first time in days.
"One morning," I agreed.
His chest rumbled with satisfaction. "Good girl."
I closed my eyes. Let his heartbeat lull me toward sleep.
