“Argh-”
An agony sharper than anything he had ever known ripped through Rocco’s chest, as if a claw had just torn open his soul.
and gasping for air.
He shot up from the chair by Scarlett’s bedside, clutching his
“Rocco? What is it?” Scarlett sat up in bed, her voice laced with concern.
This pain… it wasn’t right.
This wasn’t a dull ache; it was a devastating rip.
He tried to reach Caterina through their mind–link.
Nothing.
Absolute silence.
It was as if… as if she had been erased from the world.
“Impossible,” Rocco muttered, a cold sweat breaking out on his forehead.
“Rocco, you look terrible,” Scarlett said, getting out of bed to steady him. “Is it just exhaustion?”
He shoved her hand away, desperately trying to find the mind–link.
Caterina’s presence in his mind was gone. Completely.
“What has she done?” Rocco whispered, panic coiling in his gut.
“Who? Caterina?” A flicker of triumph flashed in Scarlett’s eyes–gone so fast he almost missed it–before being masked by a look of concern. “Rocco, don’t think about her. After what she did to me, she’s not worth-”
“Shut up!” he roared.
The hollowness in his chest grew, a gaping void where the most vital part of his life used to be.
Rocco fumbled for his phone and dialed Caterina’s number.
“The number you have dialed is currently unavailable…”
Unavailable?
Caterina never turned off her phone.
He dialed again. Still unavailable.
“Rocco,” Scarlett cooed, her voice a seductive whisper as she sat on his lap. “Caterina… she’s just trying to scare you. You know how she–wolves are. They love to play these little games.”
