We walked in silence for a few paces. The cold night wind swept down the empty street, carrying nothing but the faint rustle of distant leaves and the echo of our footsteps. The capital felt like it had been emptied just for us, streetlights casting long, lonely pools of gold on the pavement.
At the next lamp post, Celestine stopped abruptly and turned to face me. The warm light spilled over her, catching the sharp green flash of the diamond on her finger and the raw vulnerability flickering across her face.
"Why are you doing this?" Her voice came out quieter than before, almost fragile.
"Doing what?"
"This." She held my gaze, brown hair stirring lightly in the wind, the cool pallor of her skin stark under the lamp. "You know what I am. You know exactly what I'm capable of. And you're still here."
