The morning air in the dining hall was unusually tense. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee and pastries tried its best to mask the heavy atmosphere, but even the scent of bacon couldn't distract me from the weight in the room.
Rowena sat across from me, her elbows on the table and her face buried in her hands. Her hair was disheveled, a sure sign that she hadn't fully processed the abrupt change in our plans.
I prodded at my plate of eggs with my fork, trying to summon an appetite. It wasn't easy. Seraphine was seated at the head of the table, her gaze sharp and calculating as she scrolled through something on her phone.
Riley sat next to her, sipping tea with a serene expression that only made me more anxious.
"This is ridiculous," Rowena muttered, breaking the silence. She lifted her head to glare at our mother. "We were supposed to relax, not rush back into chaos."
