never felt mo

ving in their cold reflection. Glass walls surrounded me like a cage, a prison made of

, was painfully aware of ev

wn the hall, a soft, poisonous chime that remi

e tilt of her head, was a calculated stab

and I was nothing more

against the leather like it could shield me fr

remain invisible. My heels clicked against the floor in a

ian

ind his back, eyes scanning the city below like it

ercing, and even from across the room, I felt the pull of

. I could sense it. The subtle tightening of his posture when I passed, the flicke

dules, client calls but it was impossible. Every th

dn't recognize me yet held the power to un

h the glass doors like she owned the wor

elain skin flawless, her blue eyes calculating. She smiled at C

voice a silken thread of manipulation. "You've barel

perceptible flicker of agitation. He straightened, jaw tightening. "B

rning. A challenge. She was aware I existed, aware of the tension she was cult

reamed that I couldn't remain silent forever. Selene had stolen my place, my co

e up, Cassian's eyes met mine for a heartbeat too long, then darted away. Recog

kyline, painting the city in bruised or

ook was calculated, careful and yet, I knew I was walking into a storm. Cassian's office loomed ab

th now, it could shatter everything his trust, my carefully constr

ned before I

ossibly close. His grey eyes swept over me with intensi

d, voice low, a dangerous

y hands trembling slightly. "There ar

rrowed. "Cl

e. About what's real, what's been twisted. You

tly, but his voice hardened. "You t

nvited me here

ed. The memory of the boy I once knew, the boy who had looked at me with awe and tr

ed this meeting, or at least anticipated it, weavin

I knew that any misstep could allo

ossibly intimate despite its size. The skyline stretched beyond

ined standing. "Speak," he commanded s

oman beside you... the one you t

torm clouds gathering behin

eady. "Liora. I... I'm the girl fro

The skyline beyond the gl

I saw the boy I had known. Vulnerable, hurt, trusting. And then, the man h

he name tasting foreign y

e fear clawing at me. "That it's impossible. That she couldn't have su

ing, measuring, seeking proof. Recognition hove

in my mind, reminding me of the threat l

otstep too deliberate to be coincidenc

h for me to feel the panic surge. I had seconds to act

t the words cau

, predatory. "Cassian," she said, voice honeyed, eyes locking o

ing wen

on. Rage. And then , a flicker, a heartbeat of understanding, a

ation this impossible, high-stakes collis

the way things work in this office," she said softly, "because not ev

The memory of our childhood, the truth

ung in th

thout warnin

t towa

rd S

eath

stant, that the next choice he

ust f

the enti

oment, I understood

only the