Chapter 3 Don't Stay

"If you stay, they'll blame me if anything happens to you."

Cassian didn't have to raise his voice. He never did. His words hit hard anyway, the kind of weight that comes from living through moments like this, not just talking about them. The words just sat there between them, heavy and real.

Eloise looked straight at him.

Not past him. Not around him. Right at him.

"I didn't ask anyone to blame you," she said. "I'm leaving."

He didn't move aside, but he didn't block her either. He just stood there, still, watching her. It felt deliberate, like he was trying to memorize her face and didn't want to admit why.

"You think leaving fixes this?" he said. "It doesn't. Not after they've seen you with me."

Behind her, she could feel those eyes on he still watching, even if everyone pretended otherwise. The crowd acted like they'd gone back to their mourning, but she knew better. Curiosity pressed against her, sharp as a breath on the back of her neck.

"You mean them," she said.

"I mean everyone."

He glanced over her shoulder at the iron gate, just for a second, then looked back at her. It wasn't fear in his eyes.

No, it was just awareness.

Her pulse jumped once in her throat.

"What do you want from me?" she asked.

"Nothing."

"That's not true."

Something shifted in his eyes. Not annoyance, more like recognition. Like she'd caught him off guard, she said something he didn't expect.

"You came alone," he said. "Most people wouldn't."

"Most people weren't invited."

"Neither were you."

She nodded. "No, I wasn't."

Silence dropped between them. Not awkward or empty, just there, filling the space, almost like the air itself wanted to listen.

He studied her face again, careful, thoughtful. Not bold or shy. Just searching, as if he was trying to figure out what he'd gotten wrong about her.

Her pulse stuttered.

"Say your name," he said.

She hesitated. Not from fear, but because saying it out loud suddenly felt like handing him something she couldn't take back.

"Eloise," she said. "Eloise Laurent."

He repeated it quietly, almost testing the sound. "Laurent."

He didn't say it like a name but more like he was rolling it around in his head, checking if it fit, tucking it away.

"What now?" she asked.

He glanced at her mouth, just a flicker, then met her eyes again. Quick, almost accidental, but it tightened something low inside her anyway.

"Now," he said, "you walk away."

"I was trying to."

"For your sake."

She raised an eyebrow. "Mine or yours?"

"Yours."

He answered too fast. That, more than anything, made her look at him harder.

A hand touched his arm gently, familiar, certain.

"Cassian."

The voice was warm, easy.

He turned. Eloise did, too.

The woman by his side looked like she was born to quiet rooms where no one ever needed to shout. Her black coat hung just right, everything about her neat and calm. Pearls at her throat. Her face was composed, kind, and paying attention.

Her hand stayed on Cassian's sleeve. Not like she owned him. Just comforting.

"Your aunt is asking for you," she said softly. "She's worried you haven't eaten."

"I'm fine."

She smiled a little. "I know. But she won't believe me unless she hears it from you."

Her eyes found Eloise. They softened right away.

"I hope they weren't troubling you," she said.

Eloise blinked. "No."

The woman kept going, gentle as ever. "They forget their manners when they're grieving. Curiosity wins out over kindness. I'm sorry if they made you uncomfortable."

Cassian spoke, quieter. "Mother-"

So, this was his mother.

The thought just settled in, no fanfare.

She smiled. "You don't have to sound so grim when you say it."

Cassian stayed silent.

She turned back to Eloise. "I'm Valarie."

No title, no last name. Just that.

"Eloise," she repeated softly after hearing it. "It's kind of you to come today. Not everyone honors someone they never knew."

Something genuine in her voice made Eloise's usual suspicion fade.

"I thought she deserved that much," Eloise said.

Valarie's smile warmed. "I agree."

For a moment, nothing about her seemed dangerous. She just looked like a mother making sure her son didn't have to go through a hard day alone.

Still, Cassian kept his eyes on Eloise.

Valarie noticed. She gave his arm a soft, distracted pat before letting go. A gesture so natural it didn't need to mean anything at all.

"Well," she murmured, "I shouldn't keep you out here in the cold."

She gave Eloise a polite nod. "It was lovely meeting you."

"You too."

Valarie's face softened just a bit more, then she turned, already offering that same gentle sympathy to someone else before she'd even gone three steps.

Eloise watched her leave.

That was his mother.

Not scary. Not harsh. Not suspicious. Just gracious.

Eloise felt her shoulders slowly relax, almost before she realized it.

"You should go," Cassian said quietly beside her.

She looked at him. "You keep telling me that."

"And you keep ignoring me."

Still, she started to back away-one step, then another.

The gravel shifted under her heel as she turned for the road. The air felt colder over here, thinner too, like she'd left a space she hadn't even realized was holding her up.

She was almost to the end of the path when someone grabbed her wrist from the side and yanked her hard into the narrow gap between the chapel wall and the hedges.