Alice's arms tightened around him right away.
He didn't need to see her expression to know she was gritting her teeth.
It was her raw emotion.
She was hurt because of him. And it was going to affect her relationship with Catherine.
Isaac felt it hit him in the chest.
This is my fault.
I messed everything up.
Celia spoke quietly from the side.
"She was taken away—"
"Celia," Alice said, her voice sharp but tired.
It was a warning.
Her way of saying don't say her name right now.
She clearly didn't want Catherine anywhere near him at this moment.
Isaac understood.
She wasn't blaming Catherine.
She was protecting him, and protecting whatever they had between them.
But he knew the truth.
Catherine wasn't at fault.
He was.
And he intended to fix the problems himself.
He took a steady breath and opened Catherine's status panel.
The numbers, skills, and titles spread across his vision like a clean board of data.
'What is this status…?'
