Malrik POV
The day had started off without incident quiet, focused. I didn’t expect it to unravel so quickly. But then my aunt showed up. And she wasn’t alone.
Drethos walked in at her side, and just like that, the calm I’d finally found dissolved into frustration.
I had been learning to breathe again to exist in a space where the future didn’t feel like a cage. But of course, he had to come ruin that, throwing around ultimatums like he hadn’t already sacrificed enough.
It was maddening.
I’d been nothing but direct with him. I laid my intentions bare, gave him honesty where politics usually demanded smoke and mirrors. But power? Power had a way of twisting even the clearest truths.
He had made his choice. He chose ambition over his daughter’s peace of mind.
He chose power over her h
