The flickering candlelight in Kara’s chamber danced uneasily, casting long shadows against the stone walls. It was late, yet sleep had not dared touch her eyes. The weight of what she carried—within her body and her spirit—pulled heavily on her limbs, but her thoughts remained restless, pacing the corridors of her mind like a caged beast.
Tonight, she would speak to Vaelith.
She knew it had to be done. The truth could no longer stay buried between subtle glances and unspoken pain. He deserved to hear it from her lips—the child she would carry, the departure she was preparing, the fractured pieces of her heart she had tried to give him in silence.
Kara stood from the velvet chair, pressing her palm gently to her abdomen. The life stirring inside her was still only a whisper, but the pres
