Teneb exhaled sharply, shaking off the hand gripping him. "It was nothing."
The old man did not budge. "Nothing?" His tone darkened. "Then tell me, Teneb, why did you look at him as if you wanted to tear him apart?" He took a step closer, lowering his voice further. "Have you forgotten who he is? Who he belongs to?"
Teneb's jaw tightened. "I have not forgotten a thing."
"Then you should remember this well," the healer said, his eyes flashing with warning. "Cassian is not to be touched. No harm will come to him under my watch, and certainly not by your hands."
Teneb scoffed, a quiet laugh escaping him. "And you think I fear you?"
The old man's gaze remained unyielding. "It is not me you should fear." He leaned in, his next words deliberate. "It is them. And I assure you, any disrespect toward Cassian will not be tolerated—not by our Lord, nor by those who still serve their will."
Silence stretched between them, thick with unspoken threats.
