Nevara
I felt it before he said a word.
That shift.
That decision.
Thoren didn’t speak immediately after Brent finished. He didn’t argue. Didn’t threaten. Didn’t move.
He just… looked at me.
And I knew.
My stomach dropped before the words even came.
“Oh, hell no,” I said, stepping back from him like I needed distance just to breathe. “Don’t you dare look at me like that.”
His gaze didn’t waver.
“Like what?”
“Like that’s the answer,” I snapped. “Like you’ve already decided.”
His jaw tightened, but he didn’t deny it.
“It’s the only conclusion that guarantees they both live.”
The words hit harder than Brent’s threat ever had.
For a second, I just stared at him.
Then I laughed—sharp, disbelieving.
“Both?” I repeated. “You call that both?”
“They would both be alive,” he said,
