Chapter Seventy-Three:

  “What Was Always There”

  Leo walked through Emberwood Village without seeing it. The world around him blurred at the edges, weathered homes, shops closing their doors to the evening, the flicker of lanternlight, the scent of damp stone and wood. None of it truly reached him. His boots sank into the softened ground, each step met with a quiet squelch. The snow had melted, but spring had not yet claimed its place. The trees stood bare, their limbs stretched skyward, brittle and lifeless. The ground was thick with moisture from the thaw.

  His focus stayed ahead, drawn to the path Keira had walked, pulled by a question he couldn't shake. His breath came steady, but his pulse betrayed him, drumming a little faster with each step.

  The house came into view, a structure of wood and stone. Large, but not imposing. The logs, darkened with char, pressed together with something not quite mortar. The stonework had a melted quality, once liquid, now hardened into dark veins. There was something old about this place, not in ruin, but in permanence, like it had been here long before Emberwood had its name.

  Leo slowed as he reached the front steps. The door loomed, heavy and worn, its surface etched by time. His hand rose, knuckles poised to knock. Then, he hesitated.

  His knuckles hovered, a breath away from wood.

  A pause. A beat of silence. He could hear the faintest sound from within, movement? Conversation? He wasn’t sure. He let his fingers tighten more, tension in his wrist. He exhaled quietly, then knocked.

  The door creaked open, and Elyndra stood in the frame, her deep red cloak pooling around her shoulders. A playful spark lit her eyes, laced with something knowing. She took Leo in with a glance, then smiled.

  "Well, speak of the devil."

  She hesitated, just for a breath, weighing the moment, was this coincidence, or something else entirely? Then, with a slight tilt of her head, she asked, "What can I do for you, young man?"

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  Leo exhaled steadily. A muscle twitched in his jaw for a fraction of a second before he spoke. "I need to see her. I need to… " He stopped, searching for the words. "May I please come in?"

  Elyndra’s smile grew, warm but edged with that same quiet satisfaction. "Of course," she said easily, stepping aside. "She was just saying the same things about you."

  Leo followed Elyndra inside, the soothing aroma of freshly brewed tea, hints of honey and lavender drifting around him. The room embraced him with a warmth, lit by gently swaying lanterns and the soft glow of the hearth. Woven rugs softened the stone floor, and against the far wall sat a sturdy couch, well-worn but comfortable looking.

  And then, there she was.

  Keira sat gracefully, her posture composed. There was a softness to her edges, an almost hesitant energy, like a girl on her first date, trying to seem unfazed. She was comfortable, yet the way she glanced at him, as if she didn't quite understand why she felt that way.

  Her attire, a fitted black tunic cinched at the waist with subtle embroidery along the hem, paired with snug, dark trousers, held an effortless elegance. Candlelight traced over the fabric, catching every curve, and Leo swallowed hard. She looked just like Sarah would have... if not for the red hair.

  His heart stumbled in his chest. For a moment, it was like seeing a ghost, one his mind had never quite let go of. The familiarity was startling, disorienting, something he hadn’t been prepared for.

  Then Keira looked up at him.

  "Hi."

  Leo opened his mouth, but whatever words he meant to say never made it out. He was still stuck between recognition and disbelief, between the past and the present.

  "Hi," he managed, quieter than he intended, his face warming against his will.

  Leo lowered himself into the chair across from Keira, the sturdy frame creaking slightly beneath his weight. Across from him, Keira remained on the couch, poised yet hesitant, as if still trying to place the reason why."

  Elyndra settled beside her, silent. She merely watched, patient and knowing, like an observer rather than a participant. Her presence filled the room, but she did not interfere.

  Leo still said nothing. He couldn’t have, even if he tried. His eyes remained locked on Keira’s face, tracing every familiar detail as if trying to reconcile it with the present moment. With the woman in front of him. With what she meant. With what she had always meant.

  Keira’s brows pulled together slightly. Then, finally, she broke the silence.

  "Why do you keep looking at me that way?"

  Leo exhaled, but he didn’t answer immediately. He leaned back, dragging a hand through his hair, his mind fighting itself. He needed to say this right. He needed her to understand.

  When he spoke, the words came out more direct than he intended. "Because… I think I love you." He swallowed. "I think I have always loved you."

  Keira didn’t speak right away. She studied him, as if searching for something. And then, in that same careful way, she spoke.

  "I think… I have always loved you too."