Page 103 of Soulmarked

What I'd let him do.

“Fecking Christ.” My hands shook as I stared at them, still stained with whatever had passed for Cade's blood in those final moments. It felt colder than normal blood, like liquid nitrogen had replaced his life force while the mark consumed him.

His last words echoed in my head, a promise and a curse: Find me.

“Status report!” Sterling's voice cut through the chaos as CITD agents swarmed the area. They moved with precision, checking vitals and securing the perimeter like this was just another cleanup job. Like a tear between realms hadn't just ripped open right here. Like the world hadn't nearly ended in this exact spot.

“Dimensional breach is sealed,” one of the agents reported. “Energy levels stabilizing.”

“Prince's signature is gone,” another added. “No trace of...”

“Shut up.” Sean's voice was quiet but sharp. The agent immediately went silent. Others instinctively took a step back.

Sean barely noticed. His focus was on the so-called agents, watching how they moved, how they knew what to check for, how they scanned the area like seasoned hunters. Ordinary CITD field teams weren't trained for this kind of work. But these people were.

He nodded toward the ones sweeping the Great Lawn. “These yours?”

Sterling exhaled, rubbing a hand over his face. “Ex-hunters,” he admitted. “Not many, but enough. The ones who saw the writing on the wall and wanted out before the war chewed them up.”

Sean's jaw tightened. “And now they work for CITD? You're telling me hunters just gave up the kill-first doctrine and signed up to play watchdog for you?”

“Not watchdogs,” Sterling corrected. “We're still fighting, just differently. The people I recruit know the hunt doesn't end with a body count. They wanted something better.”

Sean let that sit for a second before asking, “Cade know about this?”

Sterling hesitated. A flicker of something unreadable passed over his face before he looked away.

“Didn't think so,” Sean muttered.

I couldn't look away from the empty space where Cade had stood. Where he'd made his choice, had become something beyond flesh and bone to save a reality that didn't deserve him.

“Sean.” Juno's voice carried careful concern as she approached. “We need to...”

“Don't.” My hands clenched into fists, shoulders so tight they might snap. “Don't ye dare tell me what we need to do. Don't ye dare act like this is just another hunt gone wrong.”

“It's not.” Her cool fingers brushed my arm, and I had to fight the urge to break them. “But we have civilians incoming. The wards don't have long till it is gone.”

“Let them come.” Something wild and broken clawed at my chest, demanding violence. “Let them see what their precious reality cost.”

“Sean!” Lex's hand landed on my shoulder, grip tight enough to bruise. “We have to move. We don't need more complications than we already have.”

I yanked away from him, fury rising hot enough to choke. “Complications? That's what this is to ye? A fecking logistics problem?”

“No.” His voice softened slightly. “But getting arrested for being at ground zero of whatever cover story Sterling's about to spin won't help anyone.”

“Don't.” The word came out like broken glass. “Don't pretend there's anything to find. I felt him...” My voice cracked, and I had to stop before something worse than words broke free.

Sterling appeared then. His eyes lingered on the scorched ground, on the symbols burned into reality itself, and something like understanding crossed his features.

“He's not dead, Sean.”

“Then where is he?” I demanded, getting in his face. “Where the fuck did your precious agent go when he let that thing take him apart?”

“Sean.” Juno's voice carried warning now. “Let him go. This isn't helping.”

“Helping?” I laughed, the sound raw and wrong. “Nothing helps! Nothing fucking matters because he's gone and we let him,” My voice broke completely, grip loosening on Sterling's jacket. “I let him...”

“You didn't let him do anything.” Sterling's voice was gentle now, which somehow made it worse. “He chose this. Used what was done to him for the greater good.”

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