MADELINE
I walked back down the corridor. My footsteps echoed against the walls and each one felt heavier than the last. The weight of what I'd just done pressed down on my chest until it was hard to breathe.
I'd turned him away. I'd looked Cian in the eyes and told him no.
The hurt on his face burned itself into my memory. The way his voice had cracked when he'd said he didn't know me anymore. The desperate plea for help that I'd refused.
But what choice did I have? The moment I touched that delicate, she would see everything. Every secret. Every lie. Every choice I'd made to protect the people I loved. She would see Aldric's hold over me. She would see the things I'd done for him. The information I'd passed along. The ways I'd betrayed Cian without him ever knowing.
And then Cian would know too.
