ASHER’S POV
*Flashback*
There was blood everywhere—on Julian’s shirt, on my hands, smeared across the cold stone floor. He was still breathing, barely. Short, ragged gasps. His eyes kept fluttering, like he wasn’t sure if he wanted to stay awake or not.
“He’s burning up,” I said, pressing harder against the wound.
“I know,” Vivianne snapped. “Move.”
I stepped aside, letting her fall to her knees beside him. Her hands were already glowing with that quiet, old magic she never flaunted, just used. Her fingers went straight to his chest, her face a mask of control even as her lip trembled.
“It was Aiden,” I said. “The dagger was poisoned. He knew what he was doing.”
Vivianne didn’t respond.
She just leaned over Julian, whispering under her breath—not spells, just… words. A mother talki
