By morning, the decision was made.
Not spoken or argued over, just silently carved into the space between us. Nova had to go.
I stood in her doorway for a long time, watching her sleep. Her little chest rose and fell beneath the mess of her blanket, a strand of hair stuck to her cheek, and she looked so impossibly small. The idea of letting her out of my sight felt like handing my heart over to strangers but it wasn’t a choice anymore. If Vivienne was circling closer, if she already knew about the papers… Nova couldn’t be anywhere near this fight.
Noah came up behind me, resting a hand on the doorframe. “We’ll make it quick,” he murmured.
I nodded but couldn’t bring myself to answer.
The drive out of town was quiet, the kind of quiet that pressed down harder the longer it lasted. Nova
