Adeline’s POV
I’d been waiting for the right moment to move, but patience was starting to taste like ash in my mouth.
That morning, I’d wrestled Elijah into a neat shirt he swore felt like “sandpaper” and tied Caleb’s shoelaces three times before he finally left them alone. They’d dashed toward the school gates still arguing over who could run faster, but Caleb doubled back just long enough to plant a quick kiss on my cheek. I watched them disappear into the tide of other children, a quiet ache curling in my chest.
Once they were gone, I buried myself in the herbal shop—measuring powders, bottling tinctures, smiling at customers who had no idea the quiet herbalist behind the counter had magic running in her veins.
Sometimes I wondered if they would still smile back if they knew the tru
