Chapter 186

CHAPTER 28… ANDRES The silence after the Veil’s collapse was deafening. The Moonwell’s waters had calmed, glowing faintly like embers in the dark, but the air still tasted of power— raw, ancient, and freshly unbound. Every nerve in my body thrummed with it, and Czer’s presence inside me was restless, alert, aware that something had changed irreversibly. I held Valentina close, her body trembling against mine, and I let my nose brush her hair. Her scent grounded me. But the calm was brittle. Every instinct screamed that this wasn’t over. The Veil was gone, yes, but it had left cracks… scars across the realm, and some part of me could feel the world breathing differently, as if it were holding its own breath, waiting. Luciano stirred in her arms, tiny fingers curling around the silk of her robe. Silver light coiled gently around him like living energy. His cries were gone, replaced with that quiet pulse that spoke of growing power. Something about him— our son, was awakening, and I could