This time, Eira didn't cry.
She didn't let her tears make her look weak.
Instead, she sat there quietly —thinking, processing everything with unusual seriousness for a child her age.
If something is meant for you … no one can take it away.
The old housekeeper watched her and couldn't help but feel that her earlier words might have been too harsh.
So, she quickly tried to soften them.
"No, Young Miss," she said gently, "it's not that Ms. Grace won't choose you. She will —she already loves you. It's just that … when there are more people in her life, she'll have to love everyone."
Eira heard her.
But she didn't react.
Seeing her sitting so quietly, Mabel tried to think of another way to explain things to her.
However, before she could say anything further—
Eira spoke, her voice steady and certain.
"I understand."
She then picked up the glass of juice and slowly drank it.
Mabel watched her, confused.
She had expected tears, resistance —something.
