CAELAN POV
"Don't give me the clause again." My voice came out sharper than I intended. "Give me something true."
"I am giving you something true."
"You're giving me something careful," I said. "There's a difference."
We looked at each other across the hallway. The silence felt heavy, like two people who were used to hiding the truth had finally run out of room to hide.
"And the children," I said.
Her expression shifted. "What about them?"
"I told you during the first week to keep your distance. I was specific." I heard my own voice turning cold, but I didn't stop it. "You ignored me."
"They came to me," she said. "I didn't go looking"
"You sat on the hallway floor with Emmet at two in the morning," I said. "You read to them every night. You fixed the door hinge because Rowe didn't like the sound." I looked at her steadily. "You said Dorian's name in the blue room. Like it was allowed."
Something moved across her face, so fast I almost missed it.
