KAELEN POV
The silence between us stretched, tight as a drawn blade.
For a moment neither of us moved. The torches crackled softly along the walls, their light flickering over Aedric's carefully controlled expression. He had already rebuilt his mask… calm, regal, untouchable.
But I had seen it.
That hatred.
That c***k.
I straightened slowly, forcing my breathing to steady. I wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing me lose control.
He adjusted the cuffs of his sleeve like this was nothing more than a minor disagreement. Like we hadn't just torn open a twelve-year-old wound.
"Temper has never suited you, Kael," he said quietly. "It clouds your judgment."
I stared at him for a long moment, memorizing his face in the firelight. My brother. My rival. My enemy.
