## **Chapter 8 – Apology Under Fear**
The next day, Adi showed up.
Pale. Shaking.
He knelt in front of Kael's mother.
"I'm sorry," he whispered.
"I didn't mean what I said."
Kael stood behind him, arms crossed.
His mother looked at Adi. Then at Kael.
She reached out and touched Adi's hand gently.
"It's okay," she said.
Kael didn't smile.
But something inside him loosened.
Just a little.