Chapter 25
The days that followed were tense, a fragile calm hanging over the cabin like a storm cloud waiting to break. Juniper moved through her routines with deliberate focus, but her mind was heavy with Calliope’s confession. Kael remained attentive, doing what he could to help around the cabin and train with Rylen for the coming conflict, but Juniper noticed his occasional, lingering glances—curious, searching, as if he suspected she knew something he wasn’t ready to face. Calliope seemed unchanged on the surface, but Juniper recognized the subtle shifts in her daughter’s demeanor. She was more withdrawn during Kael’s presence, her responses to him shorter, more careful. Yet when they were alone, her warmth returned, and she would occasionally share the fleeting sensations she picked up from th
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