Lucas's question hung in the air, unanswered.
"…Where's Ethan?"
For the first time since the chaos began, the room stilled.
Bianca blinked, her expression shifting almost instantly from mild amusement to something closer to concern.
"Oh…"
Her gaze drifted around the dining area as if Ethan might suddenly materialize from behind one of the tall doors or emerge from the shadows near the windows. "That's true," she murmured, her voice softening with a mother's instinctive worry. "He's usually here by now…"
A small crease formed between her brows as she glanced toward the hallway, then back at the empty chair that should have been occupied.
"He hasn't come down yet."
That alone wasn't unusual. Ethan had always been the quieter one, the one who preferred solitude to the bustling energy of family meals. But today, everything felt different. The morning carried an undercurrent of tension that made even small absences feel significant.
