Chapter 20 The Choice Of The Heart

• The mist began to dissipate slowly, the oppressive fog lifting as Meher stood motionless, her mind reeling from the Alpha's words. They hung in the air, repeating over and over in her head like a constant echo. Love, or the world. One cannot exist without the other.
• She didn’t want to believe it. She couldn’t. Ayaan and her were inseparable; their bond had been forged through trials and shared pain. Love had been their guiding light through the darkest of times. How could it be the source of their destruction?
• The Heartstone loomed ahead, its glowing surface flickering like a distant star, as though calling to her. She felt an undeniable pull, the ancient magic of the stone connecting with the deepest parts of her being. But there was no warmth in it now. No sense of reassurance. Only the cold weight of uncertainty.