Aria Pov
The supermarket doors slid open with a soft electronic sigh.
Cool air and the low murmur of weekday shoppers wrapped around me as I stepped inside. Fluorescent lights stretched in long, bright lines across the wide aisles. I paused just past the entrance, still carrying the weight of the word I had spoken in Alexander’s office. *Daddy.* It echoed in my head with every step, mixing uneasily with the ordinary task Victoria had given me. I reached for a small basket and tried to focus on the list I only half-remembered.
I had not taken more than a few steps when I heard my name.
“Aria?”
The voice was familiar—bright, slightly surprised, and edged with the easy warmth of someone who had known me before everything changed. I turned.
It was Layla.
She stood near the produce sect
