*VINCENZO*
The dim light of the lamp cast flickering shadows across the cluttered office, a haphazard landscape of papers and scattered thoughts. I leaned back in my chair, a feeling of heaviness settling over me like a thick fog. My cigar, left alone on the corner of the desk, puffed smoke that twisted and curled into the air, dissipating as quickly as my resolve. It felt as though the walls were closing in, the weight of my choices pressing down on my chest.
Adeline's face surfaced in my mind, her expression alight with a mix of surprise and eagerness, those dark eyes sparkling with something I couldn't quite label. The garden had been alive that evening with the scent of blooming jasmine and the warm embrace of lingering dusk. I could still hear the rustle of leaves above us, a rem
