Chapter 42: Defending Love
Leina's hands trembled with both anger and fear as she looked at her son. "Respect? Callian, how can you ask me to respect the woman who nearly cost me my son?"
Callian stood tall; he wrapped his arms protectively around Eira's shoulders.
"Mother, you have to understand—Eira is not to blame for any of this. She's suffered too."
"Suffered?" Leina frowned. "She hasn't had to watch her son lying unconscious, wondering if he'd ever wake up. She hasn't—"
"Enough!" Callian's voice was calm but sharp, leaving no room for argument. "I love her. I chose her. And I would make the same choice a hundred times over. You don't have to like it, but you do have to accept it."
Leina's face relaxed for a moment. "She's changed you, Callian. You were never this… defiant."
Eira's voice broke the silence. "I didn't mean to come between you two. I didn't want any of this to happen."
