Chapter eighteen
*Gifts and Revelations*
Regina placed her palms flat on the table. Her voice, when it came, was quieter, devoid of its earlier ice. “A pretty speech. But sentiment doesn’t secure a legacy. Tell me, then. Do you even love my son? Or is he just your ‘fortress’ and your ‘map’?”
The question dropped like a stone. Xami went rigid, his eyes locking on Lyra. Saphira held her breath, waiting for the misstep.
Lyra looked down at her untouched tea, the steam long gone. The silence stretched, aching and full.
“Love,” she began, the word strange on her tongue. “Alexander and Saphira… they made a pantomime of love. They taught me to hate the very feeling. It was a weapon, a lie, a transaction.” She finally looked up, not at Regina, but at Xami. Her eyes were clear, glistening but
