Lucas listened to Caelith in silence, and for a long while, he did not speak.
The room lay steeped in stillness, broken only by the occasional call of birds drifting in from beyond the lattice window. At last, he opened his mouth, his voice calm and measured, like water unruffled by wind.
"Lady Emberlyn… have I, in some way, failed you?"
Caelith shook her head gently. "No. It is not that. I merely wish to try another path."
Lucas' gaze rested upon her, steady and searching. "Is it because of Lord Thorne?"
She fell silent for the briefest moment—no more than a single breath—before inclining her head.
"In part."
He said nothing in reply.
He simply looked at her—long, unwaveringly—until time itself seemed to stretch thin between them. Then, at last, he smiled.
