"Some truths are not meant to be hidden; they are meant to test the strength of those who carry them."
Silas moved with a tense, controlled energy I had only ever seen on battlefields, never in hallways, never behind castle walls, never in purely human matters. His shoulders were drawn tight, each step deliberate, as though the very act of walking risked triggering the emotional tripwire; we were all dancing around.
Elara. Alive. Contained and capable of destroying the fragile peace we had nearly died to create.
