The healing center had become a battlefield of uneasy truces and hidden daggers. Bella remained under observation overnight after the audition attack, her bruises healing slower than they should thanks to the new life she protected in secret.
She refused a private room in the Blackwood wing, choosing instead a neutral ward closer to Elias. Every monitor beep reminded her how fragile everything had become.
Damien hadn’t left the premises. He lingered in the corridors like a shadow, his presence a constant pressure. Chen’s investigation was gaining momentum, but cracks were already forming.
In a dimly lit side office, Serena Whitewood adjusted the moonstone collar on her wrist and offered Chen a soft, concerned smile. A tray of premium lunar tea sat between them—her “gesture of appreciat
