Aria and Kaelan exchanged glances. Something about Elara's demeanor, the genuine anguish in her expression, made them both stay silent. Waiting.
Elara took a shaky breath. "I talked to Mira. I told her about Aria. About her powers, her routines, her doubts. Everything. I'm the reason she knew exactly how to approach you, exactly what to say."
The words hung in the air like a bomb waiting to explode. Aria felt like she been punched in the stomach.
"You what?" Kaelan's voice was dangerously quiet.
"I was angry," Elara said, tears streaming down her face now. "I was jealous and bitter and I wanted... I don't even know what I wanted. To feel important, maybe. To matter. Mira found me a few days ago and she told me she could teach me how to be special even without gifts. And I was so desperate I believed her."
"So you gave her Aria?" Kaelan stood up, his hands clenched into fists. "You fed our friend to a manipulative predator because you were jealous?"
