Awakened
She moved with practiced elegance, placing fine china plates before us with a modest, gentle smile that made my stomach turn.
She paused beside Julian, placing a steaming dish of garlic butter shrimp directly in front of him.
"I hope you enjoy tonight’s meal, Julian," Evelyn said softly, her voice dripping with artificial warmth.
Before Julian could even glance down at the plate, I leaned forward slightly, resting my elbows on the polished table, letting the silver bracelets on my wrist click against the mahogany.
"Mother," I said, my voice cutting cleanly through the ambient clinking of silverware. Evelyn froze, her hand hovering over the silver serving spoon. "Julian is allergic to shrimp.