Chapter 13 · The Echo in the Bone

"Don't you dare touch her!"

Cael’s voice cracked like a whip. His blade sang as it cleared the scabbard, and before Mara could blink, he slammed his body into the space between them. He pinned her hard against the cold, damp stone of the vault wall.

Mara didn't fight. She couldn't. Her lungs felt like they were filled with wet cement. Her head spun in a nauseating circle, and the silence after the thirteenth chime wasn't silent at all. It was a vibration. A hum that lived inside her teeth, her marrow, her soul.

"Get back, Cael," she gasped. Her voice sounded distant, like she was shouting from the bottom of a well. "He's... he's still here. I can feel him."

Cael didn't budge. He stayed braced against her, chest heaving. His body heat was the only real thing in a world that had gone grey. His eyes were frantic, scanning her face for the signs—the black veins, the glazed pupils, the predatory smile of the Voice.

"Leo is gone, Mara," Cael spat. He sounded almost cruel. "The thing that jumped into you used him as a bridge. It’s not your brother. It’s bait.