Chapter 253

Emilia’s POV The house was quiet, save for the faint ticking of the clock on the wall. Alaric had retreated to his office after our argument, leaving me alone in the living room to stew in my thoughts. I sat on the edge of the couch, my knees pulled up to my chest, staring at nothing in particular. Everything that had happened today —the dinner, the argument, my father’s words—pressed down on me like a suffocating blanket.