As dark as the mood of the room had turned, Ruelle couldn't help but smile. She had never imagined there would come a day when two people would argue over who got to keep her close. But then she realised that, while she had tried to oversee the problematic people, she hadn't realised her father wanted to take her home.
Carnifex was the first one to break the silence with a perfectly composed expression but the warmth that was directed at her until now, had now evaporated at the sight of Lucian.
"You appear to have misunderstood something, young Slater. Ruelle is my daughter. She will live under my roof until she comes of age. She is six years old and you are what, ten?"
"Try twenty-two. And the last time someone forced her to stay with the name of a father, he had broken limbs," Lucian replied, his expression cold.
Carnifex's eyes narrowed slightly. "I did not say she had no say, but don't you think she deserves to experience what a normal, loving family is like?"
