KAIA'S POV
"Kaia…”
Lilac’s soft voice reached me again, shaking like a leaf caught in the wind. I closed my eyes for a moment, pushing past the panic rising in my chest at the things I’d just heard and reaching inward to her.
“I know,” I whispered silently in my mind. “I’m scared too, Lilac. But we can’t fall apart now, not when they need us. I'm sure there's a way out of this.”
I let the walls drop and allowed her to feel what I was really feeling, the raw fear curling in my stomach, the heavy uncertainty pressing against my ribs, and the ache in my chest that refused to go away.
Lilac’s presence trembled back. “Kaia… maybe you should talk to him. To Leander. Try to make him see why he has to take the throne… for all of us.”
I hesitated, my mind flickering to Leander standing there
