Silence.
Utter, pure silence.
Damian didn't speak. Didn't blink.
He just sat there on the edge of the bed, his hands loosely clasped together, his gaze locked on her with an unreadable expression.
The seconds stretched. Long enough for doubt to start crawling its way back up Evelina's throat.
But she ignored it and forced herself to go on.
"I was born… somewhere else," she said quietly. "A different realm. A different future. I was a scientist. I worked in a place where magic didn't exist—only theories and data. I specialised in biochemistry and experimental medicine."
She let out a slow, shaky breath. "I wasn't supposed to be here. Not in Arcadia. Not in any of this."
Her voice echoed faintly in the room, but he still didn't move.
"I wasn't even called Evelina back then," she continued, her throat tightening. "I was Evelyn Matthew."
She paused, just long enough to glance at him, expecting confusion. Or disbelief. Maybe even the beginnings of fury.
But he said nothing.
