Darren swirled the drink in his glass, his gaze fixed on the amber liquid like it held all the answers he couldn’t voice. Then he lifted his eyes to me, and there was something raw in them—something he rarely showed.
“Your father’s love for you,” he said quietly, “it always surprised me. A man like him, carrying the weight of the family, carrying you, despite everything… I envied it. Still do. I dreamed of making sure you never lacked anything, Kael. That was the promise I made to him before he passed. To guide you, always.”
He leaned forward, the tension in his jaw showing. “I’m using this moment to beg you… leave this country. Please. I regret that I can’t do anything else for you right now, but I swear, the best thing you can do for yourself, for your family, is to walk away from this
