“Lyra… are you angry with me?” she asked softly. “I only meant to admire your strength. The way you've managed to keep going after… everything.”
I tilted my head slightly, my lips curving into a smile that never reached my eyes.
“Well, if you want to admire me properly, maybe you should go through the same agony. Maybe then, you'd understand what it's like.”
“That’s enough, Lyra,” Kael said suddenly, his voice tense with warning.
He wasn’t standing next to me. He wasn’t defending us. He was protecting her.
“She’s been through more than you think,” he added, as if trying to excuse her. “Let’s not be harsh.”
I stared at him, stunned at the audacity.
“Oh, so I haven’t been through enough?” I asked, my voice rising with fury. “Who was the one who had her child taken away, Kael? Who’s the one mourning while you pretend this is normal?”
He didn’t answer. He didn’t even meet my eyes. And Celeste? She smiled again. She reached forward, brushing my arm gently—mockingly.
“You’ve always been so resilient,” she whispered. “I truly hope you come to see why Kael made the choices he did.”
That was it.