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Chapter 43: Father and Daughter

작가: Evve
last update 최신 업데이트: 2025-12-27 00:10:09

The click of the lock, as she’d turned it, was the final punctuation mark on the death of her childhood.

Aurora was on the floor, her back pressed against the cold, polished wood of the door, in the small, dark, windowless office.

She wasn't shaking anymore.

The violent, silent tremors that had wracked her body moments ago had passed, leaving behind a strange, numb stillness. The "unwell" girl, the "hysterical" daughter who had wanted to scream, had been allowed her brief, gasping moment of terror.

Now, she was being put away.

The "Madame" was back in control.

She pushed herself up. Her legs felt heavy, but they held her. She smoothed the black wool of her tunic, her hands moving with mechanical precision. She walked to her desk and turned on the lamp.

The harsh, white light flooded the room, chasing away the shadows but revealing the starkness of her sanctuary. It was a war room, not a home.

She looked at her reflection in the darkened window. The pale face. The architectural hair. T
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