Caelan didn't sleep.
Not for a single minute.
The stranger's words echoed through his mind.
*You have twenty-four hours.*
He had spent decades preparing for this moment.
Now that it had finally arrived...
He wished it hadn't.
---
The first rays of sunlight spilled across Ashford Manor.
Liora stretched lazily as she stepped onto the balcony outside her bedroom.
The morning air carried the scent of wet earth after the night's rain.
Everything felt peaceful.
Too peaceful.
She smiled as she spotted Caelan in the gardens below.
He wasn't reading.
He wasn't taking a phone call.
He was simply standing beneath the old oak tree, staring into the distance.
She frowned.
He looked exhausted.
---
Mrs. Agnes noticed it too.
At breakfast, she quietly placed another cup of coffee in f
