Lucian's P.O.V. (Guest Appearance)
The weight of failure is heavier than any battle I have ever fought. It presses on my chest, making it difficult to breathe, suffocating me as I sit in the large room where Mai, Eldur, and Liam lay motionless. Ten days. Ten damn days since Elizabeth put them into an enchanted sleep, and still, there was nothing. No movement. No flicker of life beyond the steady rise and fall of their chests.
And Liam... Liam was the key to all of this. If he didn't wake up, Mai and Eldur wouldn't either.
I raked a hand through my hair, frustration bubbling beneath my skin. I had lied to his parents—told them that Liam, Mai, and Eldur were sent on a special training mission with Elizabeth, something vital for the upcoming ritual on Liam's birthday. I could still see the doubt in their eyes when I told them to trust me, to believe in me.
They didn't.
They wanted to. They used to. But they didn't.
And I couldn't blame them.
