The silence hung like smoke—thick, clinging to the edges of every breath.
Sofia stood unmoving, her back straight, though her fists were curled tight at her sides. The room still echoed with the weight of her words.
Pill hadn’t spoken. He leaned forward on the edge of his desk, brows drawn, jaw tight. Suri stood behind him, arms crossed, her expression caught between admiration and unease. Pacer sat in the corner, leg bouncing. Eliza paced along the far wall, her fingers twitching at her sides like she needed to shift or scream—or both.
And Dakota…
Dakota watched his youngest daughter like she was the sun after a long winter. Like he’d always known she would grow into something fierce and impossible.
He stepped forward now—past Pill, past Pacer—and stopped in front of her.
“I remembe
