Aurelia swallowed hard.
"That is…" her voice faltered slightly, "…that is a violation beyond cruelty."
"Yes," Gwen said gently. "It is."
Aurelia turned away abruptly, her thoughts spiraling too fast, too dark.
"No…" she murmured, shaking her head faintly. "There must be another explanation. Something simpler. Something that makes sense."
But even as the words left her mouth—She knew. Nothing about this made sense. Not when Isadora had controlled everything within those walls. Not when no one had been allowed near her. Not when silence had been enforced so carefully.
A slow, creeping dread settled deeper into her chest. What if…What if Isadora had not acted alone? What if she had allowed something to happen—Or worse… helped it happen? And when it had gone too far….She had simply… erased it.
