(Nicholas)
I sat in silence, the news hitting me hard but, strangely, filling me with relief. Elara was being banished too. After everything she'd done, she was getting what she deserved.
I felt satisfaction creep up from somewhere deep, unexpected but real. I never thought I'd feel any kind of joy from seeing her suffer. I had loved her, or at least thought I did.
I would have done anything for her, trusted her with everything I had. I'd turned my back on people who cared for me because I believed in her. After all, I believed she cared for me too.
But I was wrong. She'd played me, used me, taking advantage of every bit of loyalty I'd given her. She'd fed me lies and twisted my love until I was ready to destroy everything I had for her.
