“What exactly should I call her?” she repeated, her voice sharp enough to cut through the silence.
I met her gaze without hesitation.
“You’ll call her a child.”
The words echoed across the intersection.
For the first time since I’d known Coraline Ashford, the flawless mask she wore cracked. Only for a second—but I saw it.
“You would destroy everything we’ve built,” she whispered, “for them?”
“I don’t even know what I’ve lost yet.”
Behind us, murmurs spread through the growing crowd. Phones stayed raised, recording every second. Somewhere in the distance, church bells began ringing.
The ceremony had started without me.
Mave shifted Posie higher against her shoulder.
“We should go,” she said quietly. “This isn’t your fight anymore.”
I looked straight at her.
“It has always been my fight.”
She laughed once, but there was no joy in it.
“Three years ago, I begged to speak to you. Your security team turned me away every single time.”
I frowned.
“I never knew.”
“Because someone made sure you never would.”
Before I could answer, Wesley stepped beside me, holding his phone.
“Boss.”
His expression had changed.
