Tears burned behind my eyes. "I’m here, sweetheart," I whispered.
But before I could reach him, Avery’s voice rang through the air.
"Guards! Seize her!"
A rush of bodies moved toward me, but I didn’t care. I had already stepped too far into the light, and I wouldn’t back down now.
"How dare you," I snarled, my eyes burning as I turned to Gavin. "How dare you tell him I abandoned him? How dare you tell the world I was a traitor?"
Gavin’s expression remained cold, unreadable. But I saw it. The flicker of hesitation in his golden eyes. The war raging inside of him.
"Tell him the truth," I challenged, my voice rising. "Tell him how I raised him. How I loved him. How I stayed when you—" my breath hitched, my fury swallowing my words. "How you chose to replace me before I was even gone."
The entire ballroom was silent.
Mavin’s small frame shook as he looked up at Gavin, confusion and hurt twisting his features.
"Is it true?" he whispered.
Gavin’s jaw tensed, his fingers curling into fists at his sides. But Avery stepped in before he could speak.
"Of course not," she said smoothly. "This woman is delusional. She’s manipulating you, Mavin—"