Sophia stood again by her window.
The Redwood night outside was cold, the stars sharp and bright.
She heard Maddy’s voice earlier—raised behind closed doors. She heard Ethan’s calmer, broken replies.
None of it mattered.
Because no matter what Maddy screamed, and no matter how Ethan tried to quiet it…
They all knew.
Sophia had returned.
Not to heal.
Not to forgive.
But to rise.
Not as Ethan’s partner.
But like as the queen of ashes Framed in the dungeons of betrayal.
Turn around the window she went to her desk, and lit a single candle.
A few scrabbles of names were before her.
Loyalties. Weak links. Echoes of old grudges.
One by one, she would remove every obstacle.
Not loudly.
But completely.
And no one—not Ethan, not Maddy—would see the next blade until it was already b
