ARIA’S POV

“See me later, bunny.”

I blinked over and over, praying I hadn’t heard him right. But I had. His voice still echoed in my head, sharp and cold. The Kael I knew, the Kael who held me close and promised me the world, was gone. He had looked me straight in the eyes, seen the state I was in, and still smiled like everything was normal.

He knew I was here. He knew, and he allowed it. Maybe he even ordered it.

My chest squeezed painfully as the questions rushed at me. What ...