reet her father. It was a feeling akin to a phantom touch, a chill tha

by the vibrant bougainvillea cascading down t

uld seal billion-dollar deals, clasped Kae

rved demeanor, a subtle crack in the carefully construc

scent of the crimson blooms doing little to s

t fri

a predator brought in to

t felt like a friendly acknowledgment. It felt like a

on the gravel seemed muted, a stark contrast to the booming voice of her father as h

r words, but the Calabar bre

you could com

more delicate th

lica

s. It usually meant volatile, dangerous, something he prefer

he dealt in the very shadows her father usually manipulated

ast to know, kept deliberately in the dark, a fragile ornament

eless, in hushed phone calls, worried glances from the staff, and the ev

f hushed voices downstairs. Aria, feigning interest in a centuries-old ed

r room, dusting already pristin

rs. Davies?" Aria asked,

ds trembled slightly as she a

... unsettled

.. he's having

wards the closed door, a

... he's a very.

was an und

yes had held hers. There was a raw, untamed quality about him t

men who usually frequented their home – politicians wit

s a strain

man at the table, was preoccupie

as he ate, his gaze occasionally flicking towa

r father, his voice a low, gravelly rumble th

ith a curt efficiency, re

his... travels," her father offe

quite a bit o

gaze me

of something unreada

rely sightseeing tours. This was a man who looked l

his gaze lingering on her

as its interes

her closeted himself i

trate on her book. The silence of the house fel

ent rooms, each one a reminder

o the small library her mother had curated before her unti

filled with the comforting s

y truly personal space

nt of metal caught her eye. Tucked away on a high shelf, behind a co

dn't rec

rs brushing against something else hidden behind i

letter, written in a flowing, elegant

ion made her

earest

rarely wrote letters; she preferred face-to-fa

he words blurred through

lt decisions, and a name Aria had

ith a plea for Elias to be careful. The letter was dat

ria had never t

read washe

Vella... w

letter have to do wi

ehind her. Aria's head snapped up,

ng the frame, was Kael. His dark eyes, unreadable as

y clutched the parc

re you do

, her voice ba

ze flickered from the letter to her face

to the library, closing t

ied only whispers moments before, no

is voice low and dangerous, "

r the threat in his tone, another voice echoed from the hallwa

ria?

going on