Kaden sank into his chair, fingers clenched tightly on the armrests as the last echoes of Lila’s laughter faded into the dark.His mind was a battlefield — a war between the fading spark of his true self and the crushing grip of the dark magic strangling his will.

He saw everything — her mocking smile, the boldness of her guard, the way she made him a prisoner in his own home.

But he could do nothing.

His voice was silent. His power, shackled.

A deep, aching rage boiled beneath his calm ...