#Chapter 33: The Plea

Elijah As the night wound down and the energy of the event began to fade, I slipped away from the mingling crowd. The conversation I’d just had with Mason lingered in my mind, like an echo I couldn’t quite shake. He had been warm, even kind—an unexpected balm to the tension that had gripped me all evening. Our conversation was easy, the kind I hadn’t realized I missed until it happened. I’d felt a sense of comfort talking to him, but that comfort unsettled me too. What was I supposed to do with it? After all these years, after everything that had happened, why did I still care about how Mason made me feel? I shook my head. There were more important things to focus on right now. I needed space, a moment to breathe, to collect myself. But more than anything, I needed to go get Thea. My heart ached for her. She had been caught in the middle of so much turmoil lately, and I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong tonight. It was a gnawing sen