Cassian’s POV

The words hung in the air, a silent agreement that sealed our fate. Isobel's relief was palpable, a physical weight that seemed to lift from her shoulders. I knew I was playing into her hand, giving her the time she needed to solidify her lie. But I also knew, with a certainty that chilled me to the bone, that a mother's fear for her child was a genuine thing, even from a woman who had orchestrated my downfall.

I turned to the doctor, a new sense of purpose hardening my ...