Chapter 180
~ Octavia ~
The drive from the hospital to my parents' apartment felt like navigating through a dream that had turned into a slow-motion nightmare. After ensuring Dyson was stationed like a gargoyle outside Frederick's room, I finally allowed myself to retreat. But there was no real sanctuary to be found.
I let myself in, and the heavy silence of the living room told me my parents were still awake. They were seated like a tribunal of two, waiting for the daughter who had stormed out in a whirlwind of grief hours ago.
"I called you several times," my mother began, her voice a mix of reprimand and relief as I shed my coat.
"I know," I said, the word coming out as a weary rasp.
My parents exchanged one of those long, silent looks that only people married for thirty years can manage. My father stood up, gently taking my arm and guiding me to the sofa. He sat beside me while my mother took the armchair opposite us, her eyes searching mine.
