Chapter 8: The Truth Behind His Visit

Gavin remained outside Highmoor for three days.

He never crossed the Sanctuary gates.

He simply stood there, waiting.

By the fourth morning, even the volunteers who had never met him were whispering about the Alpha heir who had traveled all the way from the capital.

I refused to ask why he was still there.

On the fifth day, Princess Helena summoned me to her office.

When I entered, Gavin was not there.

Instead, a sealed report lay on her desk.

“This came from the Royal Council,” Princess Helena said.

I picked it up.

“What is it?”

“A request for Gavin Mercer to temporarily join our northern peace negotiations.”

I looked at her in surprise.

“Here?”

She nodded.

“The Council claims his experience at the disputed northern border makes him useful to the negotiations.”

I understood immediately.

Gavin had found a way to get close to me without asking me to return.

Princess Helena studied my expression.

“I can reject the request.”

I shook my head.

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“If I run every time he appears, I’ll spend the rest of my life running.”

She smiled slightly.

“Then let him come.”

Two days later, Gavin entered Highmoor under official royal authorization.

I saw him for the first time since leaving the capital in the Sanctuary’s eastern courtyard.

He looked thinner.

His usually neat hair was slightly disordered, and dark circles rested beneath his eyes.

But the biggest difference was in his expression.

He looked uncertain.

When his eyes met mine, he stopped walking.

For several seconds, neither of us spoke.

Finally, he said my name.

“Celia.”

I nodded politely.

“Mr. Mercer.”

His face tightened at the formal address.

“You don’t have to call me that.”

“We’re no longer engaged.”

He looked away.

“I know.”

A painful silence settled between us.

Then Gavin reached into his coat and pulled out a small wooden box.

“I brought something for you.”

I didn’t take it.

“What is it?”

“The rabbit lantern.”

My heart gave a small jolt.

“You kept it?”

He nodded.

“You left it in the old storage room at your house. Your mother was going to throw it away.”

I stared at the box.

That little lantern had once been one of the most precious things I owned.

But now I couldn’t understand why seeing it hurt more than seeing the engagement ring ever had.

“Why did you bring it?”

Gavin’s voice dropped.

“Because I finally realized that I was the person who took something precious from you.”

I looked at him carefully.

“You didn’t take it, Gavin.”

He raised his eyes.

“I gave it away.”

“You gave away our future every time you chose someone else’s feelings over mine.”

His expression changed.

For once, he didn’t argue.

I continued quietly.

“When Evelyn was sick, I understood. When you studied at Lakewood, I waited. When you transferred to the border, I waited again. When you postponed our wedding for the third time, I still accepted it.”

“But you never once asked how long I could keep waiting.”

Gavin’s fingers tightened around the wooden box.

“I thought you would always be there.”

I smiled sadly.

“That was your mistake.”

He looked at me for a long time.

“Celia, I never wanted to hurt you.”

“I know.”

“Then why does it feel like I’ve lost you?”

I had no answer for that.

Maybe because he had finally lost me.

I turned away.

“Keep the lantern.”

“Celia—”

“I don’t need it anymore.”

I walked away before he could say anything else.

Behind me, I heard the wooden box hit the ground.

I stopped for half a second.

Then I kept walking.

For the first time, Gavin understood that regret could not always repair what neglect had destroyed.