Alden's voice rose in fury, his aura flaring as the tension in the room thickened. "Julian, who do you think you are talking to?" he said in anger.
But Julian, unfazed matched his father's intensity. His own aura flaring in response.
"If you had shown this much anger to the situation," he retorted coldly, "it would have been resolved way before." His eyes locked onto Alden's with a defiance that left no room for hesitation.
Regina's heart tightened as she listened to Julian's words, her eyes flickering between her husband and son. She knew, deep down, that Julian was right.
If Alden, as the Duke of Easvil, had shown even a fraction of this intensity and anger toward their family's troubles, things might have been different.