The line wasn't dead. Voren could still hear his father breathing on the other end, but the silence after those words felt heavy, like it pressed down on the whole room and changed the whole mood in it.
Voren's expression didn't fall apart. It just went very, very still.
His eyes moved over to Seraphine, who was watching him through the pain now, reading his face even though she could only hear one side of the conversation. It was enough for her to know something big had just changed.
Voren tightened his grip on the phone and stepped away from Seraphine a bit, though he stayed facing her. His voice stayed low but firm.
"Dad." Voren's back teeth clenched together so hard it actually hurt. "I asked you for the antidote. Not a lecture."
