London · Shoreditch
February 8, 2025 · 10:00
Eva sat in her studio, three dossiers spread across the desk before her.
Caroline had sent them over the previous day. Three clients, three contracts, three men who needed to be “seen clearly.” She had not signed anything yet—only skimmed through the files. The photographs, the background investigations, the meticulously designed approaches to getting close—she knew them all too well. Familiar in the way a long-abandoned house is familiar: the key still fits, the door still opens, yet everything inside lies veiled in dust.
She lifted her coffee and took a sip. Milk, double sugar. Not her usual habit; simply something she felt like trying today. She could not quite explain why.
The door opened.
Eva raised her eyes.
Claire stood in the door
