The next morning, Aria arrived at the office looking exhausted.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
Lena's words had followed her home and haunted her all night.
"He discards his subs eventually."
"Enjoy your month."
"His only soft spot has already gone."
No matter how many times she tried to dismiss them, they lingered.
Like poison.
Like a wound she couldn't stop touching.
She sat at her desk staring blankly at her computer screen.
The spreadsheet before her hadn't changed in ten minutes.
Neither had the cursor.
A familiar hand suddenly appeared beside her desk.
Sophia dropped into the empty chair.
"Okay."
Aria blinked.
"What?"
Sophia narrowed her eyes.
"Talk."
"I'm working."
"You've been staring at the same cell for fifteen minutes."
Aria glanced at her monitor.
Sophia wa
