Gavriel stayed beside Althea, holding her close every time the convoy stopped to rest. He slept lightly, always half awake, as if his presence alone could keep her tethered to this world.

If magic and shifting were still possible, the Cross Clan would have already been buried beneath the earth by his hands. The banner of Althea’s bloodline should have been raised over the House of Aetherion by now, restored to where it belonged.

He did not know how many days had passed anymore. Time ...