Jay stiffened. "Because you were never supposed to know."
The sentence landed like a slap.
"What?" Liv's voice trembled not with doubt, but with anger held in for far too long. "I wasn't supposed to know?"
"This is Zelthar land," Jay said firmly. "There are things that—"
"That must be hidden from me?" Liv took a step forward. "From your own wife?"
Jay was silent for a moment, then said, "From someone I have to protect."
"Protect me from what?" Liv shot back. "From reality?"
Jay's voice hardened slightly. "From unnecessary burdens."
Liv let out a small, humorless laugh.
"Unnecessary," she repeated. "So in your eyes, as Duchess… I don't need to know my own territory?"
Jay looked at her, his jaw tight.
"You're not an outsider," he said. "You're the Duchess of Zhareth."
Liv nodded slowly.
"Yes," she said. "I am the Duchess."
She stepped closer. Only a few paces separated them now.
