Margot! I shout into the comms. Check Maya’s vitals!
Her cellular crystallization has stopped, Margot’s voice crackles over the comms, thick with unshed tears. Her immune system is standing down. The golden veins are stabilizing. She’s going to live, Luna. She’s going to live.
I slump against the holographic table, my legs suddenly unable to hold my weight. Kade is instantly there, his right arm wrapping securely around my waist, taking my weight. Through the mate bond, I feel his profound, overwhelming relief, mirrored perfectly by my own.
We did it, Kade projects, his mental voice thick with emotion. We held the line.
We held it, I agree, closing my eyes, letting the warmth of his body seep into my bones.
Night falls over the Academy, but the air feels different. The crisp, biting e
