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Anzi!
She pushed out all of Kai’s emotions. She couldn’t handle them. Too intense, too heavy, too much. The way his mind tried to swamp hers the instant she stepped into his mind—she wasn’t going to deal with it.
Anzi, what’s happened to you? Why are you-
“Hurt? Because that’s part of my job. If you keep asking me why I’m hurt every time you see me, I’m going to start wondering if you know what a soldier actually does.”
Don’t do this now, he snapped, startling her. He sounded terrible. She didn’t know how an inner voice could sound as fatigued as a physical one—but no, it wasn’t mere fatigue. It was rough and hollow like a boulder chiseled out from the inside, full of crags and brittle spikes. I’m coming to you. And you won’t stop me this time. I’m coming for you.
“Careful, sounds like a threat,” she said, light and sardonic. Could she calm hi
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