“You don’t get to decide that for her.”
My voice dropped. Low. Dangerous.
“She’s had enough people try to cage her in the name of safety. Don’t think for a second she won’t burn yours to the ground too.”
Caelen’s smile twitched. He rose slowly, adjusting his cuffs like he wasn’t about to say something meant to gut me.
“I can see we’re not getting anywhere,” he said calmly. “But for the record? I care about her too. Deeply. And I know she deserves better than what you—what any of you Shades—can offer.”
He met my eyes—cool. Measured. “You know that too. Don’t you?”
I didn’t flinch. Didn’t move. But my fists curled tight beneath the table.
I stood. “You are so full of shit, Caelen.”
“Am I?”
I stepped toward him, fists clenched. “You don’t even know Elle. You show up after years of silence—afternothing—and now, what? You think you’re in love with her?”
“Ialwaysloved her!” Caelen snapped, louder than he meant to.
The words echoed off the library walls. My chest rose and fell. Blood roared in my ears.
“You didn’t even look for her,” I said, low and sharp. “You didn’t fight for her. You let the world believe she was gone. And now you want to play the noble prince?”
Caelen’s face flushed—guilt flickering behind the defiance.
“I was achild, Phoenix.”
“So wasshe,” I growled. “And she still crawled through hell while you sat in your golden cage and waited for the world to fix itself.”
“Don’t talk like you were there!” he shouted. “You don’t know what I lost!”
“No,” I said. “But Idoknow whatshelost.”
Then came the line. The one I shouldn’t have said—but did. “And you’re damn lucky you don’t have to live with knowing it.”
“Fuck you,Phoenix,” Caelen spat—his voice cracked, stripped bare. “You think you’re so much better—smarter than everyone. Like onlyyoucan understand her. Like the rest of us don’t matter because our trauma doesn’t meet your fucking standard.”
“Just get the fuck out of here, Caelen. Go back to your throne room,” I said coldly. “Get the hell out of my face.”
“What are you going to do if Idon’t?” he sneered.
“Don’t push me,” I warned, voice like a fuse.
“Maybe youshouldn’tpushme,” Caelen snapped back.
Then he shoved me.
Not hard.
But hard enough.
That was it.
My fist hit his jaw like it had been waiting.
He reeled backward into a shelf. Recovered. Charged.
