Chapter 23 · She stepped into him, close enough that the

She stepped into him, close enough that the front of her coat brushed his. "I'm afraid the core will take you, and I'll still be standing here. Happy?"

His hand lifted toward her face, then stopped just short of her cheek. Heat rolled from his palm. His fingers hovered there, shaking once.

"No," he said. "Not happy."

The lock cracked.

Kade slammed his hand down.

The brass case split open with a burst of white light. The force ripped through the room. Ayla's knees buckled, and Kade caught her under the arms.

For half a second, she saw a different room.

Clean white walls. No dust. No broken shelves. No blood.

A younger Kade stood in the center, both hands braced around the black core. His hair was longer. His face was softer. He looked terrified.

A girl stood across from him.

Ayla.

Not the Ayla who stood in the archive. Younger. Smaller. Her dark hair was braided down her back, and a fresh soul-mark burned across her palm.

She held the core with him.

Their hands were locked together around it.

"Don't let go," young Kade said.

Young Ayla's voice shook. "You promised it wouldn't hurt."

"I lied.