Chapter 121

ELARA

For a moment, I couldn’t breathe; it was as though all the air had been sucked from the room, leaving only a crushing silence that drummed in my ears.

My heart pounded, each beat painfully loud, thudding with a mix of disbelief and betrayal.

I opened my mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

How can this be?

My mind raced, darting between fragments of memories and realizations, each one cutti