Chapter 184

ELORA'S POV “Grandma, I…” She lifts her hand, stopping me mid-sentence, her eyes sharp. “I need the truth,” she said quietly, which somehow hurts more than if she had yelled. “Not the lies you’ve been feeding me for days.” My breath caught. My eyes widen before I can stop myself. “Elora,” she continued, taking a step closer, her voice steady but heavy with disappointment, “you of all people should know this. No matter how long you try to hide things from me, it would only take me a minute to find out the truth. That’s who I am.” My heart starts pounding in my ears. “But I ignored the doubts I had,” she added, her gaze burning into mine. “Because it’s you, Elora. And I believed, truly believed, that you would never lie to me.” Tears blurred my vision as I took a step closer, my chest aching. “Grandma, I’m sorry. I never meant to…” “But you did.” she cuts in. “You lied to me.” The words land hard. Aiden moves forward instinctively. “Grandma…” She turned on him sharply. “You’re just as gu