He looked at Grace properly for the first time since bringing her here. She'd lost weight, the desert's harshness taking its toll on someone unused to physical hardship. Her hands, once perfectly manicured, were now rough and calloused from work she'd been doing to occupy herself. Her eyes, once calculating and controlled, now carried a desperate vulnerability that made her look years older.
"What do you want from me?" he asked, his voice quieter but no less cold.
Grace swallowed hard, seeming to gather courage. "I want to explain. Not to justify—I know what I did was unforgivable. But I want you to understand why. I want you to hear the full truth, not the fragments I gave you in that mansion."
"I already know the truth," Jorghan said. "You were abused by my father. You saw me becoming him. You killed me to stop the cycle. What else is there?"
