For nearly an hour, the ground had been silent. The link then became tighter.

"Ahhh..." I flinched.

A dull aching began deep in my chest, moved up my throat, and then exploded behind my eyes. Like a wound that has discovered a pulse, the relationship pulsed.

Maya stopped in her tracks. "Tell me you didn't experience that."

"Yes, I did."

"Isn't that him?"

I forcefully gulped. The smell of wet stone and burning filled the air. "He's being worn by something."

With tiny fingers ...