The royal garden was quiet. Too quiet.
The hedges loomed like walls, the moonlight cutting harsh lines through the darkness. Cael stood with his back to the marble, breathing shallowly. The scent of roses felt suffocating.
"You disappeared," Aurelian said softly, standing a few paces away. "I heard she died."
His voice was low. Careful. As if speaking too loud might shatter the moment.
"They said it was heartbreak," he went on. "After the duke's death. That she jumped from grief."
Cael didn't move.
Aurelian continued, slower now.
"But Rowan... he changed. Something inside him broke. He searched for you like a madman—days, weeks, months. No rest. No reason. Just your name over and over like a curse."
Cael swallowed hard, eyes locked on the ground.
"I thought," Aurelian said, quieter now, "that you killed her and you ran away"
Cael finally looked up.
"I didn't.I didn't kill her,I wish to and I planned to .....but it was Rowan"
And then, in the hush of midnight, Cael told the truth he'd kept buried.
He told him about the duchess.
And then he told him about Rowan.
About the moment he realized the woman he hate most was no longer breathing.
About Rowan's bloodstained hands.
About the look in his brother's eyes when he said, "Now she'll never hurt you again."
Aurelian listened in silence.
And when Cael was finished, his voice dry and aching, Aurelian said nothing at first.
But he didn't look surprised.
"I always wondered," he murmured. "There was something in the way Rowan looked at you... something no brother should."
Cael closed his eyes. "I was too stupid to notice "
"And now?"
"I ..."
A long pause passed between them.
Cael's voice was softer now. "I can't go back to him."
"You won't," Aurelian said with understanding eyes.
His hand settled gently on Cael's shoulder. A quiet promise. A shield.
"I'll help you to hide"he said
Cael didn't speak. He couldn't.
But he nodded.
And in that stillness, surrounded by secrets and roses and silence, Cael allowed himself to hope—just a little—that he wasn't alone anymore.
They sat in the shadows of the royal garden, the palace behind them glowing like a gilded lie. The ball raged on inside—music and laughter and politics—but here, between two friends, the air was quiet. Honest.
"I didn't expect you to show up with them," Aurelian said at last, voice low.
Cael stayed silent, mask now resting in his lap, the moonlight brushing across his tired face.
"They listen to you," Aurelian continued. "I didn't think anyone could reach them. The palace feared them. The court wanted them caged—or worse. But you..."
Cael sighed, fingers tightening around the mask.
"I didn't plan to meet them," he murmured. "They just... showed up out of nowhere And I can't just turn blind eyes to them.They were just kids"
"But you stayed."
"I couldn't leave," Cael admitted. "They reminded me of myself. Of what it feels like to be alone and hated. I thought if I could just give them something warm... they'd stop hurting even if it's for temporary ."
Aurelian watched him closely.
"You care about them."
"They're not monsters," Cael whispered. "Just children who were never loved."
Aurelian looked away. His shoulders stiffened, and a shadow crossed his face.
"My mother," he said tightly, "is the one who's been sending assassins."
Cael's breath caught.
"I tried to stop her," Aurelian added, shame curling in his voice. "I begged my father, but he—he doesn't care. To him, the twins are reminders of an affair. To her, they're threats to the throne. She's always been afraid they'd take it from me."
"They won't," Cael said. "They don't even care about the crown."
"I know," Aurelian said bitterly. "But she doesn't listen."
He paused, eyes flicking up to Cael's face.
"I'm sorry. I wanted to protect them. But I couldn't. I thought keeping my distance was safer for them."
Cael gave him a faint, understanding smile.
"You still care."
"Not just about them," Aurelian added, his voice dipping. "I care about you, too."
That silenced them both for a moment.
Then Aurelian's gaze darkened.
"I have to warn you," he said carefully. "Rowan..."
Cael stiffened.
"He's watching. I think he suspects. And once he knows—it's over. He'll chase you to the ends of the earth. You know that, don't you?"
Cael looked away.
"I know."
Aurelian's hand closed over his.
"You have to go. Take the twins and leave the capital before it's too late. Even I—" His voice faltered. "Even I can't stand in his way, Cael. Not anymore"
Silence settled like a final curtain.
And then Cael nodded.
"I'll go."
But even as he said the words, he knew—Rowan was already far too close.
They parted without a word of goodbye.
Aurelian stood in the garden long after Cael disappeared into the shadows—mask back on, shoulders hunched, like a fugitive under moonlight.
He looked so small.
So tired.
So alone.
Aurelian clenched his jaw, guilt burning low and bitter in his chest. He had wanted to protect him once. Had promised himself he would.He is an only good friend of his.
But some promises are powerless in the face of obsession.
Aurelian's gaze dropped to the gravel path, yet his mind was far from the palace gardens.
It started with the smallest things.
Rowan never let Cael walk on the side of the hallway near the windows—"Too drafty," he'd say, placing a firm hand on Cael's back to guide him away.
He memorized Cael's schedule without trying.
He smiled—only when Cael was in the room.
Aurelian had always thought they were just close. Half-brothers who found comfort in each other's loneliness.
⸻
One time,Cael had fallen asleep in the old study after hours of reading—head tucked into his arms, breathing slow, a candle flickering low beside him.
Aurelian had come to fetch him.
But when he reached the door, he stopped.
Rowan was already there.
Standing quietly over Cael's slumped form. Eyes soft. Shadow stretched like a cloak across the desk.
Then he leaned in.
Pressed his lips gently to Cael's temple.
Held them there.
Not brotherly.
Not innocent.
Something else. Something wrong.
Aurelian had backed away in silence, heart thundering in his chest.
He never told Cael.
He remembered the night he tried to convince Rowan.
They were still boys then—Cael barely fourteen,Rowan eighteen ,Rowan had pinned Cael to the ground during sparring, one hand curled around his wrist, the other cradling the back of his head as if Cael were made of glass.
Too long.
Too soft.
It wasn't brotherly. Not even close.
Cael had laughed, brushing dirt off his tunic as he stood. Completely unaware.
But Aurelian had seen it. The look in Rowan's eyes.
Possession. Hunger. Devotion.
Later that night, in the library, Aurelian confronted him.
"I saw you," he had said. "The way you look at him."
Rowan didn't deny it.
He only smiled—slow, quiet, poisonous.
And stepped close.
Aurelian remembered how cold the candlelight felt in that moment.
"Don't interfere," Rowan said, voice soft as silk and beautiful smile.
The words weren't loud.
But they settled like a dagger beneath the skin.
Aurelian hadn't forgotten the chill that crawled down his spine. Not then. Not now.
⸻
He watched the shadows where Cael had vanished, fists clenching uselessly at his sides.
Run Cael, he thought.
Run far and don't look back.