I remember the taste of blood the night Hector broke my jaw for speaking Aiden’s name. Now, standing in the ruins of our cottage—ashes still clinging to the wind—I feel his presence like a heartbeat beneath the earth. My fingers tremble, not from fear, but from power surging through me. This body remembers death. This soul remembers love.

A whisper curls from the charred hearth: You were never meant to return.

Then, a hand touches my shoulder. I freeze. No one should be able to see me—not in this half-state between life and the Veil. But when I turn, it’s him. Aiden. Older, scarred, eyes filled with tears and fire. 'They told me you were gone forever,' he says. 'But I never stopped calling your name.'

Behind us, shadows stir. The Church’s Inquisitors have come, blades forged from broken vows. They know I’m alive. And they’ll kill us both to silence the truth.

Aiden grips my hand. 'We can run. Or we can fight. But we don’t face this alone anymore.'