“Because they didn’t,” Beth said flatly.
“We suspected that, too,” Elara said. “But it was too clean. No trace of magic. Nothing crude or violent. He used his gift so carefully, it left no residue. Her aura was confused, notdamaged, just enough to muddy things. Had she been weaker, she wouldn’t have realized things were not right and she would have gone through the entire thing, making him part of the High Family.” She exhaled. “We believed her. Absolutely. But we could prove neither intent nor coercion. And we couldn’t act without risking our own laws.” Her voice turned flat. “We don’t get to punish someone just for being an ass.”
“But Gael did.”
Elara’s eyebrows rose, surprised but not angry. “You really are digging through the family vault, aren’t you?”
“I’m getting there.”
She nodded. “Then, yes. Gael paid Bryn a visit. No one knows exactly what was said, except that Bryn filed a complaint afterward. Officially. Said Gael threatened him.”
“Did he?”
Elara took a slow breath. “Among other things, I’m sure.”
“Did you know he was going to face Bryn?”
“No. And that was the point.” Her voice softened. “He didn’t tell us because if he had, we would’ve had to stop him, or risk consequences ourselves. The High Family is expected to be neutral. Impartial. Gael knows that. He broke protocol, and we didn’t find out until after the complaint came through.”
“Did he get in trouble?”
“Oh, yes. There was a private disciplinary review. He was heavily fined. Quietly, of course.”
Beth stared at her. “He was punished for protecting someone.”
Elara met her eyes, unwavering. “Yes, and he made it so we wouldn’t be. He took that burden from us.”
Beth looked down, fingers tapping on the table.
“He protected us, too,” Elara added gently.
Beth’s throat tightened. The sadness in Gael’s message. The hurt in his eyes when she accused him of being just another cold, privileged elf.
And now?
Now, she wasn’t sure how to feel.
“Now it’s your turn,” Elara said more lightly. “Tell me how you know all this.”
Beth shifted, not exactly embarrassed, but suddenly aware of herself. She rubbed her thumb along the rim of her mug. “Gael told me.”
Elara blinked. “He did?”
Beth nodded.
“That’s... surprising,” Elara said, brows lifting. “I don’t know many people as private as Gael, and that’s not exactly a story he wears with pride.”
Beth let out a slow breath and, after a glance around the quiet pub, began to talk.
The garden. The apple dicing. The hike invitation. How it all spiraled into something ugly and unexpected. When she finished, Elara said nothing but her jaw was tight and her silence too careful. She looked like someone working hard to keep her tone neutral and winning the battle by inches.
“We...” She cleared her throat. “We try to keep an eye on Bryn. Especially around people, or magiks, he might try to involve himself with.”
“I was never involved with him,” Beth said quickly. “I didn’t want to be.”
“I know. And that’s exactly the kind of thing that worries us. What he wants and doesn’t get.”
Beth looked down. “Gael told me to be careful,” she murmured, a thread of guilt catching in her voice.
