Eli was in shock.
No—scratch that. He was beyond shock.
It felt worse now than when Caelen had kidnapped him—and that had only been a few days ago. His brain hadn't even had time to process that trauma, and now here he was again, thrown into another storm he hadn't asked for.
Within just fifteen minutes, he'd been shoved into chaos: rummaging through Elione's cavernous walk-in closet, fumbling with buckles and straps, yanking on hunter gear that didn't even feel like it belonged to him.
His fingers had trembled the entire time. His chest felt like it was going to cave in.
And now—now he was back in Kairo's sleek car, the hum of the engine steady and powerful beneath them, as though mocking the erratic pounding of his heart.
They were on their way to an S-Class gate.
An S-Class gate.
Eli's hands sat stiffly on his knees, his thigh bouncing up and down like a jackhammer. He bit down on the inside of his cheek, trying to control it, but the nerves bled out anyway.
