Chapter 11 · The Black Door Below

"Don't touch him!" Noah grabbed my shoulder, but I shoved him back.

"Move."

I dropped beside Kael. He was a wreck—one knee twisted wrong, his coat burned through at the ribs. Black dust crawled over his gloves. His fingers jerked in rhythmic spasms, like he was still fighting something I couldn't see.

The bond in my chest tightened. Not pain. A warning.

His pulse was skipping. One beat. Nothing. Two beats. Nothing again.

"Mara, the platform is folding," Noah snapped. "We have a minute, maybe less."

"Then make it longer."

"That's not how collapsing rift stations work!"

"You hacked the city grid," I spat, leaning over Kael. "Hack the floor."

Noah's face went gray. "I can open a route, but I can't carry him."

Kael's eyes cracked open. "Don't," he rasped.

"You don't get a vote," I whispered.

"You sealed the rift. Your power is raw," he breathed, his voice a jagged edge. "If you restart the Bond, it'll burn through you."

"You're welcome to crawl out without me."

His hand shot up and clamped around my wrist. The grip was weak, but it stopped me dead. His palm was searing.