e Herr

s. I woke up with a dull ache in my head and a sharper one in my chest. The doctor had been kind, reassuring me t

t Axel, or Bryn, or the museum projec

rmer colleagues. I stopped at a name I hadn't called in years: Clara' s aunt, Eleanor Vance. Eleanor was a distant family fri

into the phone, my voic

nd steady. "Elouise, darling. What'

bling out in a rush. "I need to lea

hock. "I'm sending you a ticket," she said, her v

n't explain. She didn'

ing. I packed a single carry-on bag. No designer clothes, no expensive jewelry. Just essentials. The onl

haustion heavy in my bones. I had to finish the transfer of the

already at my desk, organizing files, as if she owned the place. She was wearing my fa

any warmth. "I need you to step away from

n place. "Oh, Elouise, I was just trying to help! Axel said

't need your help, Bryn. And I don't need Axel's concer

h! This? Axel gave it to me this mornin

twisting the knife. He wasn't just taking my projec

ill distant, held a flicker of something, perhaps concern at the tensi

e calm, but with an underlying steel that warned

, her voice soft, almost a whine. "I was just trying t

suitcase by my feet. A muscle in his jaw twitched. "Elouise," he said, his voice dropping

agues, usually bustling around, were now frozen at their desks, pretending t

eam, Axel? Is that what she is? A

yn is a talented young architect who deserves a

eady. "Except perhaps my approval of her methods." My eyes

ed up. She was a master of the performance. "I r

f a chair, and she went down with a soft cry. Not a loud, dramatic fall

ice was laced with genuine concern, a tone I hadn't heard directed at me in weeks.

voice was sharp, incredul

el. I'm just clumsy. Elouise didn't mean to... startle me."

leaving. Now. And when you come back, I expect you to have sorted yourself out. Bryn wil

Their heads were close, his hand gently stroking her hair. The intimacy of the gesture was a

ch when I was sick, his whispered promises of forever, his fierce protectiveness. Where was

in in my chest was dull now, replaced by a cold, resolute emptiness

, past the gaping silence of the elevator. I didn't look back. Ther

ignited within me. Not hope, not yet. But a fierce, unyielding determination. T