Isla's POV
“What are you doing here, Lucien?” The words slipped out before I could stop them.
I wasn’t supposed to ask anything. I was supposed to turn, shut the gate, and walk away like he didn’t exist. But my hand, it stayed on the lock, frozen, useless.
Lucien smiled faintly, like seeing me wasn’t part of the plan but a pleasant accident. “I’m glad you’re still alive,” he said, his voice too calm for the chaos his presence stirred inside me. “I wondered where you went after you were banished.”
I almost laughed. The audacity. The way he said banished like it was some gentle misunderstanding, like he hadn’t stood there and watched it happen.
“After I was banished?” I repeated, tilting my head, “Or after you banished me?”
That got him. His jaw tightened, just a little, and his hand
