The room grew oddly quiet. Alpha Kael excused himself to speak with the servants and arrange for the gifts we had brought. The moment he left, the atmosphere shifted. Vera stirred her tea slowly. The composed expression on her face would have fooled most people. It didn't fool me. Across the room, Manda remained unusually quiet. Something that should have reassured me. Instead, it made me suspicious. Manda was rarely quiet without a reason. My suspicion only grew when I noticed her glance down at her phone. Then quickly type something. A message. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't have thought twice about it. Today, however, I noticed. Several minutes later, a knock sounded at the door. Manda's posture straightened almost immediately. The movement was subtle, most people wouldn't have noticed, but I did. A second later, the door opened. And Lucas stepped inside. Every thought in my head vanished. For a moment, all I could do was stare. I
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