"That case…" Helios exhaled slowly. "…it came to me around the time the old Sunward Sentinels were leaving one by one. And Alyce stayed in the kingdom for a few months."
His steps slowed as he spoke. Subtly. Almost without thinking.
His hold on Ezra tightened just slightly, not enough to hurt, but enough to feel.
"I wasn't getting anywhere with it," Helios continued. "And…"
He stopped.
He hesitated.
Ezra watched him closely.
'And?'
He didn't interrupt. Didn't push. Helios was clearly thinking through something he didn't usually say out loud.
Helios drew in a quiet breath.
"The case is complex," he said finally. "Layered. Hidden. Even after months of overseeing it, I had no solid leads."
Ezra frowned faintly. That was unlike Helios. He was meticulous. Patient. Strategic.
"Kaelis," Helios continued, "as much as I love my brother, is rarely serious about matters like that."
Ezra almost scoffed.
"That is a polite way to put it," he muttered.
Helios ignored the comment.
