Chapter 23: The Open Door

Callum had ordered Sau-lin to remain at the far end of the alley. Then he had collapsed where obeying him made rescue least convenient. His heart stopped inside her chest. The missing beat opened a hollow under her ribs. The tether drew tight, then slackened so suddenly that Sau-lin pitched away from the wall. The ringing in her skull ceased. Across Stockton Street, Callum folded against the brick. His shoulder struck first. One knee hit the asphalt, his hand clawed at the wall, and then he fell beside the outline he had drawn for his brother. The echo went on around him, and Callum did not move. Sau-lin stood with one palm against the Waverly building and felt the tether weakening. The line between them had always carried his life toward her. Heat, sleep, the steady labor of his heart. It had made her visible. It had put color into…