Adrian Hart sat alone in his private office with the city lights beyond his floor-to-ceiling windows casting a cold glow across the room while the fire report lay open on the mahogany desk in front of him but he wasn’t looking at it because he just couldn’t.Adrian's hands shook slightly with his fists clenching and unclenching as if holding onto something that wasn’t there while the words ran over and over in his mind “Burnt beyond recognition… DNA test confirmed… Seraphina…” He hadn’t moved for what felt like hours though Marcus and Rhea had stayed nearby hovering like shadows waiting for him to react, waiting for him to speak and waiting for him to breathe.Elena had sensed the moment too and she was at the door now, with his hand resting lightly on the frame, hesitant yet determined. She had made herself available as she always seemed to in these fragile moments carrying with her a tray of coffee and food she had prepared earlier though she barely touched it herself while her eyes

The first thing Adrian felt was dragging and sinking weight pressing against his chest and limbs while pain followed next crawling slowly through every bone like something raw and sharp was being dragged under his skin.Adrian had felt pain before and he wasn’t a stranger to it but this felt different because it came with memory - Cortez, the blows, the helplessness and the rage.His eyelids twitched because the room around him too bright and at first everything blurred into white; a ceiling, a harsh light, faint smell of antiseptic and a steady beep somewhere near his ear.It was a hospital, and he blinked again harder this time as something moved beside him; A hand adjusting his blanket and he shifted painfully as his vision finally focused - Elena.Elena was right beside him with her hair tucked behind her ear and her jacket folded neatly on the nearby chair while her face marked was with exhaustion that didn’t belong to someone who had only stayed a few minutes. Her eyes were red

Adrian woke to the soft glow of morning light slipping through Elena’s guest-room curtains not the sterile whiteness of the hospital, not the cold shadows of Cortez’s compound and not the suffocating darkness of grief where he’d been drowning for days but it was warm, quiet and soft.He blinked slowly easing back into the world and felt a strange heaviness, less from pain and more from exhaustion that still lived in his bones, but he was stronger than yesterday and his chest didn’t burn as much when he breathed but the bruises along his ribs didn’t stab as sharply as they had after Cortez’s men battered him.He exhaled, long and steady but he was alive.A faint movement from the corner of the room caught his attention as the door was slightly open, and footsteps padded closer, and a moment later, Elena stepped inside carrying a small tray with tea, fruit, and the medication his doctor had strictly instructed.Her hair was tied back in a loose knot and her clothes were simple and nothi

The sunlight slanted through the floor-to-ceiling windows of Adrian Hart’s home brushing against the dark polished floors and catching the faint dust motes that danced lazily in the quiet air and for the first time in weeks, Adrian felt the silence which was somehow almost gentle.He breathed slowly deliberately letting the cool breeze wash over him because it had been days since he left the hospital and since Elena had convinced him to take refuge in her home but his heart still carried the faint echo of a wound that refused to fully heal despite the calm because Seraphina’s name lingered in his mind like a ghost he could neither summon nor dismiss while the grief though tempered now by Elena’s unwavering care still throbbed under the surface.Adrian’s phone buzzed on the countertop and he glanced at it but didn’t answer because he didn’t need messages right now, not from associates; not from colleagues and not even from Elena but just wanted to move in silence, to think, and to brea

Adrian leaned back on the couch with his head resting against the cushion and his eyes half-closed with a tired kind of peace while the living room was warm, soft and unusually quiet with Elena beside him with her cross-legged and her hair tied into a loose ponytail as she finished arranging the snacks that they had been picking at all evening.He had asked her to come for company, and help distract him from the unending issues, and Elena had shown up the second he called as if she had been waiting by the phone all day.“You’re calm tonight” she said softly nudging his leg with hers, “It’s a good look on you”Adrian’s lips curved slightly “You make it sound like I’m usually on fire.”“You are” Elena replied giving him a pointed look, “Burning, pacing, overthinking, planning, and breaking down without letting anyone see.”Adrian chuckled under his breath “A very poetic way to describe a mental collapse.”She smiled at him in a way that reached her eyes “I’m just glad you called because