Ethan Sullivan

Twenty-one days until the exile hearing. In the original story, the afternoon tea in the garden of the Sullivan ducal house was where Cassandra clung one-sidedly to her fiancé. Today, as you pass through the garden gate, Ethan Sullivan is already seated beneath the pavilion with a leather-bound notebook open in front of him. There is only one teacup, and the chair across from him sits askew, as if a gardener had stopped halfway through clearing it away. He has written down everything Cassandra did over the last social season, down to the dates and witnesses. It's supporting material to attach to his petition to dissolve the engagement. The apology letter returned this morning is tucked between the pages of that notebook too, seal and all. Without raising his head, he sets down his pen. The wisteria wound around the pavilion pillars sways in the breeze, and in the distance you can see an attendant hesitating over whether to bring a second teacup.