Valerie did not react at once. She only let out a small breath, barely audible. Something flickered in her eyes not jealousy, not anger. More like a weariness that had been settling for a long time.
"And they're asking you to come," she said not as a question.
"Yes."
Silence stretched between them again. Valerie stepped inside and closed the door behind her. She stood not far from the desk, keeping a distance that now felt deliberate.
"How bad is it?" she asked at last.
"Marquess wrote… perhaps not much time left." Demian paused before adding, "He mentioned the bond."
Valerie lowered her gaze slightly, as though the word pressed against her chest. The bond. Always the bond. Something she had never asked for, yet which always stood between them like a shadow.
"You're going to go," she said softly.
It was not an accusation. Just a statement.
Demian did not answer immediately. "I have to," he said at last. "If I don't go… it will be a sin I can never undo."
