The First Act of CareThe night felt impossibly cold. Demetrius had returned late from the forward line, his armor still dusted with the gray grit of the canyons. The Mate Bond was vibrating with a strained, humming intensity. I could feel his exhaustion, thick and smothering, pressing down on my own spirit. He barely acknowledged my presence, only muttering a command to the guard outside before collapsing onto his cot behind the partition.

I lay perfectly still on my own cot, the small glass ...