"The Lady Eris is my priority,"
Soren said, his voice losing its warmth and regaining its edge of absolute authority. He offered no further explanation, his hand moving to the small of Eris's back.
Caelen stood as well, his eyes searching Eris's face with a desperate, lingering hope.
"Eris… before you go. You could see Rael. He's in the nursery just down the hall. He's asleep, but… you could see him. Just for a moment."
Eris froze. The image of the five-year-old's facebflashed in her mind. The ache in her chest was a familiar, hollow thing.
She wanted to go to him, to stroke his hair and whisper apologies into the dark, but the weight of her own failures as a mother felt like a physical barrier.
To see him only while he was unconscious was a mercy she wasn't sure she deserved.
"Not tonight, Caelen," she said, her voice tight. "Let him rest."
