Lilia didn't know how long she had been sitting at the window of her former room, gazing outside. The mansion's exterior was beautiful—something she had never truly paid attention to before—but her mind was elsewhere. Distant. Detached.
Thoughts swirled in her head, a tangled mess of memories. But at some point, it felt like she wasn't thinking at all. Just… existing.
A soft knock at the door broke the trance. She didn't need to guess who it was.
Evie.
"You can tell them to pack everything, Evie," Lilia said softly, her gaze never leaving the view beyond the glass.
But then—she felt it.
A presence.
The scent of a familiar cologne drifted into the room, threading through the air like a whisper. Her body tensed before she could process why. Then—
A hand. Warm, strong fingers wrapped gently around her neck, lifting her chin so she was forced to look up.
Her breath hitched.
Zethan.