The name seemed to echo off the bare walls of the small room, turning the air instantly cold. Julius stood perfectly still against the wall, his hands dropping to his sides as his mind went entirely blank.
For a long moment, nobody in the room moved or breathed. The dark excitement that had filled his body a second ago vanished, replaced by a cold, numbing shock that made his knees feel weak.
"You are lying," Julius said, his voice coming out flat and low. He took a slow step forward, his eyes fixed on Arthur's bloody face. "You are just a cornered dog telling desperate lies to save your skin. My mother has nothing to do with this. She left the city years ago."
Arthur let out a weak, bubbling laugh, coughing up more blood onto his chest. He could barely keep his remaining eye open, his body sinking low into the chair.
