The walk to the study felt longer than it should have.
Footsteps echoed softly through the manor’s corridors, each turn marking how far they’d moved from polite conversation. No one spoke. Whatever Harper was about to reveal already hung between them, tightening nerves and sharpening focus.
By the time they reached the study, anticipation weighed heavily in the air.
Charles’s study was vast and imposing—dark wood paneling lining the walls, towering shelves filled with leather-bound volumes, and tall windows draped in heavy curtains that muted the late light. A large desk dominated one end of the room, while a seating area with deep armchairs and a long sofa occupied the center, arranged for discussion rather than comfort.
Everyone found a place to sit, the room settling into a quiet, e
