Page 104 of The Heart of Winter

"Yeah."

There was a long pause. "I find solace in the fact that we survived. Because maybe some others did too?" He hesitated. "But yeah, it’s unlikely many made it out. The rest… perished." He shook his head, a grim look in his eyes.

"I also think about the ones who will get the news. About our deaths."

A look of pain and sadness passed over Winter’s face, a grimace I hadn’t seen before, but he quickly regained his usual composed expression.

"They probably don’t know what exactly happened. Maybe they’re still holding on to hope."

"That’ll change fast. Every hour reduces our chances and dashes their hope."

Winter slowly nodded. He was avoiding my gaze again.

"Yes, it will be a blow for our families," he said in a very formal tone, almost like he was offering condolences himself. It seemed like he was trying to distance himself emotionally from the situation.

"Not so sure about that. My father probably won’t even shed a tear. He always thought I was a loser, a bad apple. Now it’s simple for him, Vren will take over DevApp. My twin brother’s most likely celebrating right now."

Winter furrowed his brow, his lips tightening before he spoke.

"That’s not true, Sariel. Jacob believed that if you found something you were passionate about, you could be great at it. I know you have pretty impressive potential as a designer. And I don’t think you’re being fair to him. There’s no parent who wouldn’t feel the pain of losing a child."

A sudden, almost overwhelming bitterness filled me, enough that I decided to change the subject, just to get rid of the feeling. Winter clearly saw my father differently than I did.

He looked toward the cave entrance, seemingly impatient, as if he thought that being here with me might limit our chances of being found, but I desperately wanted him to stay, against my better judgment.

"So… what about your family? You thinking about them right now?"

He answered slowly, his tone measured. "My parents… this will probably break their hearts. They already lost River when he ran away. My dad still suffers because of that. He had eight children, now he has six."

"Your parents are True Mates, right?"

"Yeah."

"Take comfort in that thought. They have each other, theirBondwill help them get through this."

Another glance toward the entrance.

"I hope so," he muttered, looking pensive. "Because I don’t want to add to his suffering. My dad is a wonderful person. He loves us all as much as he possibly can." Was it just me, or did his voice waver slightly? "For his sake, I really want us to be found as soon as possible." He suddenly stopped. "That’s why I should go now. If they send out drones, there’s a chance one of them might notice me."

Abruptly, he turned around and walked out, like he didn’t want to dwell on our families anymore. I was left alone in the cave, with all my negative thoughts boiling inside.

For a moment, I just sat there, tense, digesting it all, letting it sink in. Only then did I slowly look around, scanning the cave.

It was really comfortable here, even the walls seemed to radiate a bit of heat, but there was one factor that wouldn’t let me relax.

My leg hurt like hell.

It was simply impossible to rest. It was like my whole body was strained, disturbed. I’d come to the depressing conclusion that until we were found, I wouldn’t be able to let go of that tension… not even for a moment.

But as I lay there, stretched out on the mattress and staring at the rocky ceiling, I felt something strange in my abdomen, something very unexpected, that definitely shouldn’t have been happening in this situation.

And I had… a disturbing wetness around my anus, a slight clenching sensation inside.

"What the hell?" I muttered.

This was not a good omen. I knew exactly under what circumstances my body would behave like this. It was when the heat was approaching.

I’d already gone through four of them since I was nineteen, so I knew the early signs well. I hadn’t expected it to come for another few months, but…

---