75

VIVIANA

I woke up with a start, the bed cold and empty beside me. Phin wasn't there.

It was the knot of emotion tightening in my chest. I could feel him through the bond. He was upset, extremely upset.

Panic took over as I sat up, the sense of his distress too strong to ignore.

I climbed out of bed before I even had a chance to think. Where was he? Why hadn't he come back to bed?

The bond pulsed, leading me toward Marilee's room.

When I reached it, I stopped dead in my tracks.

Phin stood at the door with it barely cracked open, his eyes fixed on Marilee as she slept. I saw his shoulders shaking.

He was crying. Quiet, broken sobs that I'd never heard from him before. I froze, not knowing what to do. I had never seen him like this, never imagined he could break like this.

I wrapped my arms around him from behind, pulling him close. The moment I touched him, the sobs grew louder and far more intense.

He leaned back into me, his body trembling as whatever he was feeling see