I dragged myself upright, every joint screaming. My inner wolf, which had been a constant low hum at the back of my mind for as long as I could remember, was silent now. Not sleeping. Gone quiet in a way that felt like a room after someone has died in it. "Caspian was here. He forced an entire dose of Severance Root down my throat. Did you know that?"
Seraphina's expression stiffened. She lowered her gaze. "I knew."
"You knew?"
I fought with everything I had to keep the tears from falling. Inside the hollow space where my wolf should have been, there was nothing. No growl of rage, no surge of betrayal. Just silence, vast and terrible, like pressing your ear to a chest and hearing no heartbeat.
She reached for my hand. I pulled away.
"Fenris, he was only protecting himself. If you and I were to have pups someday, where would that leave him and his bloodline? Where would that leave the pups? It's only natural."
I laughed, hollow and sharp. Natural. What a convenient excuse.
Seraphina set down the bowl and spoke again. "Caspian's been doubled over with stomach pains ever since he got back to his den. It's possible some dark energy from you affected him..."