Chapter 159

*Elora*

I woke to the scent of scorched earth and the steady rhythm of Kaelen’s heartbeat against my spine. The explosion that had torn through the canyon still echoed in my bones, but the fire no longer raged. It pulsed now—slow, deep, ancient.

Inside me, the flame had changed.

It wasn’t the violent hunger that had once lashed out through my veins. It didn’t scream or claw or threaten to consume.