The Hidden Princess At All-Boys Alpha Academy

Chapter 0769 "Sweetheart," mom whispers, glancing back at the fire. "Baby...try it again, okay? Can you...can you pull on the wind? Like you did before when... Luca was here too?"

I frown at her and shake my head. "Mom, it needs physical contact," I say. "That's how it's always been. And he's...not here."

She looks at me, her expression pleading, and she glances once at Jackson like she's worried for him. "But he is with you, baby," mom whispers, raising her own hand to wrap around her neck, high up and close to her jaw.

I gasp a little, realizing that she's touching her neck precisely where Luca marked mine. My own hand flies up to the mark - the indelible piece of Luca that I'll always carry

And then I snap my head back to the fire that still burns in the middle of the clearing, and I pull hard on the wind, just as I would if Luca were here holding my hand.

The wind soars through the clearing, ragged and uneven. I pulls it in shaky bursts, not the smooth torrent it was before - but it's there - and it's so clearly responding to my call -

grief, as the wind mixes with the fire, lifting it high into the air. We all watch, breathless, as the fire climbs into the sky. And I shake my head because it's

I try to put the pieces of this together. He wraps one arm around my back, his other hand softly cupping the back of my head as he stands steady and holds me tight. I take a few deep breaths, trying - trying hard to understand it - to put the pieces of it

That this, maybe, was what she was talking about the whole time. That getting the marks wasn't even about my romantic relationships that it was always about

Whatever this is.

when they're far

murmurs after a long moment, coming close. "Sugar, are

and then I turn my face to my mother, my cheeks

at Jackson with that worried expression. "Luca... your bond with

wide as

stand close behind her listening.

the physical effects of th