Chapter55: The Unravelling

Chapter 55: The Unravelling  XENOIS The tension at dinner has been too much and it felt suffocating even to me. There were forced smiles and polite exchanges that were being exchanged through the dinner and it kept piling on a shaky foundation. When we were finally done with dessert, I knew I couldn't let this petty charade continue any longer without addressing what was happening here. "Sophia," I said, standing from my chair slowly keeping calm as I looked at her,  "could I speak with you privately for a moment?" Her eyes brightened up with that looked dangerously like hope as she beamed happily nodding her head. "Of course." "Perfect!" Mother spoke up before I could say anything else to her as she took lead once more and said.  "You two go have your chat. Lumina, dear, why don't you help me with the dishes? We can have some girl talk while they handle their business." The way she said "girl talk" made my skin crawl, especially when I saw the look of pain that crossed Lumina's face.