"Seamus—I'm with child!"
The words stopped the world.
The men halted mid-step, rigid as statues. The silence was immediate and painful.
Kenneth turned his head first, slowly. Seamus followed. Both stared at Elena—her figure framed by the flickering sconces, her hand pressed over her heart, her eyes bright with unshed tears.
The moment stretched between them like glass—fragile, shimmering, one heartbeat from breaking.
Seamus blinked. Once.
Then he stepped back.
Not forward.
Back.
His face unreadable, he turned without a word and pushed past Kenneth, disappearing into the night without so much as a glance.
The door slammed shut behind them.
Elena stood alone.
Kenneth lingered for just a second more, staring at the spot where Seamus had vanished. He turned to her slowly, sorrow in his features.
"My lady," he murmured, bowing his head. "Forgive him. He… just needs time."
Then he, too, was gone.
The foyer felt colder than it had minutes before.
Elena let her hands fall to her sides, the silence screaming in her ears.
The only sound was the ticking of the longcase clock and the faint crackle of the hearth in another room. Outside, the wind howled like a warning.
She placed a trembling hand over her lower abdomen.
There was no movement yet. No flutter. But the healer had been sure. She could feel it too, something blooming inside her, tender and terrifying.
"Well, darling," she whispered to the tiny life beneath her hand, "it's just us for now."
Her voice cracked. What did she expect?
"Let's go wait for your father in our bedchambers, hmm?"
She lifted her chin, refusing to cry. Not yet. Not for this.
She would give Seamus the time he needed. She would not break. Not for fear, not for disappointment, and certainly not for shame.
Because she was no longer alone.
As soon as she was back in her chambers she scrawled out a note with a steady hand, resolve steeling within. She sealed it with silver wax and handed the letter to Cheri.
"You know where and who this needs to go to. Make haste, please."
Cheri nodded and left at once.
Elena gazed into the fireplace, a chill still lingering despite the roaring flames.