He’d stopped moving, his head stilling as his depthless eyes devoured me. It was hard for me to believe I’d forgotten that intense stare.

“You don’t remember me, Shadow, but our souls matc—”

Before I could finish my sentence, he roared, a deafening sound that had true power behind it, sending me flying back into a nearby shelf. I hadn’t been ready for it, failing to brace myself and stop bones from breaking. Normally, it wouldn’t be a huge deal, but the few minutes it took me to heal was all the time the beast needed to attack again. Thankfully, my wolf saw the issue as well, forcing the change on us so we healed in an instant.

Without a glance back, we took off through the library, Shadow right on our tail.

Calling up the fire as soon as the portal came into sight, we dove through. Shadow didn’t follow me, but I felt him there, standing on the lair side of the portal.

Dammit, that had not gone as well as expected, but at least I knew what I was dealing with now. And I didn’t have to track Shadow down halfway across the worlds. He was here, and now I needed a plan of attack.

19

Gaster and Sam appeared mere seconds later, waiting patiently as I shifted back. Then, my favorite goblin dug out another sheet with which to fashion a toga for me, and I filled them in on what I’d found.

“He’s completely lost himself to the beast.” My lips were pressed into thin lines as I tried to figure out what the hell I could do now. “I’m going to have to keep pushing, bit by bit, until I figure out the key to breaking through to my Shadow.”

Gaster’s face was uncharacteristically solemn. “Are you sure that the man is not lost without hope? It has been known to happen, and I’m not sure that those lost are ever truly recovered.”

“He’s still there,” I said firmly. “After everything he’s gone through, I seriously doubt this is the moment he gives into the dark side.”

Gaster didn’t look convinced. “If what you’ve said is true, you might be the one thing that Shadow could not handle losing. He doesn’t remember why, but he knows deep inside that he’s broken beyond repair. From what I heard, Shadow destroyed worlds for you. He dismantled the Solaris System with a swipe of his power. Literal worlds fallin—”