"You don't understand." Clara's voice trembles as she grabs my arm. "My family has connections everywhere. Private investigators, government officials, even people in the underground. When my mother sets her mind to destroying someone—"
"She succeeds?" I finish calmly.
"Always." The word comes out as a whisper. "Aiden, maybe we should have thought this through. My mother doesn't make idle threats."
I study her face in the dim streetlight. Fear and concern war in her expression, but underneath it all, I catch something else. Relief. As if finally telling her mother the truth—even a fabricated version—has lifted some invisible weight from her shoulders.
"Are you having second thoughts?" I ask.
"No." The answer comes quickly, surprising us both. "No, I'm not. But I'm terrified for you."
Her honesty cuts through the night air like a blade. I feel something stir in my chest—an unfamiliar warmth that has nothing to do with cultivation or power.
