180. The Secret He Still Keeps

Roman

There are truths that burn on the tongue. Not because they’re cruel, but because they arrive before the ground is ready to hold them.

I sit across from her, Nova… no, Pendo, I remind myself, because she chose that name with intention, and I carry a secret so large it feels like a second heartbeat in my chest.

I’ve met the children.

The knowledge presses against my ribs every time she speaks about them, every time her eyes soften when she says they, ...