I focused on the strange device that had brewed the coffee.
Jack followed my eyes and perked up. “Oh! Would you like some more?”
“Yes, please.”
He bolted to his feet, moving with a surprising eagerness, pouring more coffee and retrieving the sugar and cream.
Once we both had fresh mugs before us, Jack hesitated, fingers curling around his cup. His expression grew cloudy.
“Has he…” His throat bobbed as he swallowed. “Has Balthazar ever harmed my daughter?”
I set my cup down, jaw tightening.
“He’s tried.” My voice came out colder than I intended. “He tried to poison her mind.” I swallowed the bitterness in my throat. “He turned her against me. She nearly killed me.”
Jack’s mouth parted in shock.
A long silence stretched between us.
“That must have… destroyed her,” he finally whispered. “I can’t imagine what she felt when she emerged from his spell.”
I could. I had seen it in her eyes—the torment, the guilt.
Jack exhaled, looking as though he might cry. But then, he straightened, determination overcoming his grief.
“When I discovered Alina’s lies and secrets,” he murmured, “when I learned the real reason she sought me out…” He lifted his gaze to mine, recalling the old pain.
“I tried to protect Olivia.”
Jack ran a hand through his sparse hair, then wiped his face with his palm. “I tried to shield her from the truth about her mother. If she had found out… I knew it would break her.”
I tightened my grip on the mug. “Balthazar told her everything. It did break her.”
Pain crossed Jack’s face.
I had watched Olivia unravel from the truth. A daughter should notdespise her mother. However, a mother should not give her daughter reasons to hate her.
For Alina, motherhood had always seemed… an afterthought.
Jack’s gaze dropped to the table, his eyes misting over. “I can only imagine.”
I hesitated before saying, “Did you know Alina had another child? A daughter named Emily. She’s with Olivia now. They met in the 19th century.”
Jack rocked slightly in his seat, his expression unreadable.
“Oh…” He blinked a few times. “That must be a comfort to Olivia. To have a sister.” A humorless chuckle escaped him. “And it doesn’t surprise me that Alina had another child. She was a wild one. She was…”
His fingers spread against the table, pressing into the wood as if trying to steady himself. He exhaled before pulling his phone from his pocket.
With a swipe of his thumb, the device glowed to life. He tapped something and lifted it to his ear.
“Lee, where are you?” His voice carried an edge of concern. “Call me when you get this. Roman and I have been talking, and we need your advice.”
With a sigh, he tapped the screen again, and the glow disappeared.
Jack set the phone down, shaking his head. “I don’t know where he is. This isn’t like him. He’s always here when I need him, especially when you first arrived. He was so happy to see you here. And now… I can’t seem to reach him.”
Silence settled between us as we sipped our coffee.
