E L L A R A
The path to Adrian’s villa is too quiet.
Salt clings to the night air, heavy with humidity and secrets. Lantern lights flicker along the boardwalk, casting gold halos on the pavement, but up here, past the private gate and the sharp turnoff from the clinic trail everything goes dark. No cameras. No guests. Just jungle hush and the sound of my footsteps crunching gravel.
I shouldn’t be here.
This isn’t protocol. There are a dozen safer ways to debrief about the sabotage like encrypted emails, closed-door meetings, and a quiet note slipped to Ethan.
But I’m not thinking like a doctor right now. I’m thinking like a woman who felt someone peel back the pulse of her clinic, hollow out her arsenal, and leave her vulnerable. Like someone who needs answers before morning.
And may
