Chapter 291

Eli’s POV

I was able to perceive her scent even before I saw her. My lips curve slowly as I lift the teacup to my mouth which I requested from amid, taking a delicate sip while my eyes remain on Kieran.

But I know. She’s watching. Of course she is.

“She’s learning,” a soft voice hums beside me, low and amused.

I don’t turn my head. I don’t need to.

“I would be disappointed if she wasn’t,” I murmured under my breath, barely moving my lips.

A faint ripple of shadow curls along the edge of the bench, stretching like something alive before settling again. My smoke, lala. My companion.

Invisible to everyone else but very real to me.

“And him?” the voice asks, curious, almost playful. “Is he learning too?”

My gaze flickers briefly to Kieran’s face. He’s distracted as always.

Lost somewhere in his thoughts, eyes distant, shoulders heavy like the weight of the world still sits on them even after the war has ended.

“No