Malrik POV
I pivoted without another word, leaving her behind. I didn’t have the energy to keep sparring I needed out of that moment, out of that tension.
My feet carried me toward Dravina’s room, the thought of her offering a kind of refuge I hadn’t realized I was craving. I knocked when I reached her door, waiting. Nothing.
A faint prickle of unease crept under my skin. Something wasn’t right. Against better judgment, I turned the knob and stepped inside.
The sight that greeted me made me freeze.
The room was in complete disarray scattered belongings, overturned furniture, the kind of mess that spoke of inner chaos.
On the floor, I spotted a canvas lying face-down.
Curiosity pulled me forward. I crouched, lifted it, and felt my breath catch. It was me.
She’d painted me. And not j
