Kael's eyes widened slightly as the word echoed in his mind. Mate. He felt it too. The bond. But he had never known they were fated mates. Not once.

"How?" he wondered, his gaze dropping to her face. Her eyes were closed, her head fallen back against him. "Morvienne?" he snapped back to the present. "Morvienne!" His voice cracked as panic surged through him, erasing the shock of the bond.

He began to shake her, his hand trembling as he gripped her shoulder. "Morvienne, wake up! Open your eyes! Morvienne!"

He shook her harder, his heart racing, but she remained unresponsive.

Suddenly, he stopped shaking her and just went still....