That night, I made it through dinner with the pack, through the evening check-ins, through all the leadership responsibilities that demanded my attention.
Then I went back to my quarters and collapsed.
Kael found me twenty minutes later, sitting on the floor with my back against the bed, staring at nothing.
"Hey," he said, closing the door behind him.
"Hey." My voice sounded mechanical even to my own ears.
He sat down beside me, not touching, just present.
"Want to talk about it?"
"Eight people died yesterday."
"I know."
"I promised Sarah she'd survive. What if I lied? What if she doesn't make it?"
"Then you gave her hope in her final days. That's not nothing."
"It feels like nothing." My hands were shaking. I clenched them into fists. "I can still feel it, you know. The divine
