#Chapter 142 – A Revelation

Ronan In the dream, everything was quiet. Not the sharp silence of tense corridors, no, this was a soft quiet. It wrapped around the body in a warm embrace. Lila sat beside me on a low bench, her knees tucked under her, firelight flickering against her cheek. We weren’t in her chambers or mine, but some imagined in-between. A place that smelled like cedar and safety. Her eyes were clear and focused. No fever. No pain. She smiled, small and tired, but with a kindness I yearned for. “You don’t always have to hold your breath around me, you know.” I tried to speak, but the words caught in the back of my throat. She reached for me before I could find them, one hand lifting to cup my cheek, slow and certain like she’d done it a hundred times before. Her fingers were warm and callused. Familiar. “Ronan,” she said, and there was no confusion in her voice. No trace of Damon’s name. Just mine, spoken from the heart. I leaned into her touch before I knew I was doing it. “I kn