Ingrid’s POV
The mansion felt too quiet.
Even the wind through the corridors whispered secrets, and I had never been one to ignore whispers.
For days now, something had been off. Kael had grown distant again. Not cold, not angry… just absent.
His mind was somewhere else. No matter how I dressed, how I spoke during our few moments together, I couldn’t hold his attention for more than a fleeting heartbeat. He was present in body alone.
My patience was wearing thin.
I couldn't keep waiting for the girl to slip. I had to go looking for the truth myself.
Kael didn’t have time for idle chats anymore. If it wasn’t the guards telling me he was not to be disturbed, it was that he wasn’t even in the mansion.
My teeth clenched. My heart beat like a war drum in my chest.
It was her. That gir
