Caleb
“If you want to live a good life, Sophia… then grovel before me, and I might change your life.” I laughed.
A laughter sharp, venom-laced, the kind of laugh meant to cut deeper than any blade could.
Sophia stood there, still and silent, her olive blouse wrinkled at the shoulders, file clutched like a lifeline. Her face remained unreadable, that same damn calm she’d always used when she didn’t want to give me the satisfaction of a reaction.
But I knew her. I could read the tension in her spine, the way her grip on the folder tightened slightly. I could feel the burn of her restraint.
And yet, she didn’t say a word.
Didn’t snap.
Didn’t look at me.
She just turned her back to me, the same way she did months ago, and walked away with quiet dignity.
She walked back to her insid
