Damon's POV

The storm had been howling for hours, but I couldn't sit still anymore. The wind clawed at the windows of my office, snow piling high against the glass, and yet the cold wasn't what chilled me ... it was the silence. The bond between us had grown faint. Too faint.

I stood there, staring at nothing, hands braced against the desk, breath coming unevenly. There was a hum at the back of my mind ... her presence ... but it flickered like a dying flame.

"Aria," I whispered, but the name ...