The hospital corridor was hollow‑quiet around me, but inside I felt every pulse of adrenaline like a hunting pack in my veins. Damon and Aria were with me, yet for a moment—I felt utterly alone.

Damon’s trembling fingers gripped his phone like it was a lifeline or a weapon. My mother had left to give us space, leaving the four of us—Lucien, Aria, Talia, Damon—in the eye of a storm we all sensed but of which none of us yet fully measured.

When Damon finally spoke, his voice cracked, ragged like an engine failing under too much weight:

“He has Lily.”

Time stopped.

My heart hammered, and the blood pounded...