The dining room had thinned to a whisper of its earlier chaos. Only a handful of souls remained, scattered across tables like forgotten chess pieces on an abandoned board. I sat across from Theo, our empty plates pushed aside, the warmth of his knee against mine under the table sending quiet jolts through my body with each subtle shift. Elijah and Elena sat opposite us, nursing cups of coffee that had likely gone cold, their faces bearing the weight of Benjamin Thorne's unexpected appearance just an hour before. The silence between us felt heavy yet comfortable – the kind that forms between people who don't need words to understand the gravity of their situation.
"We need to carry on as planned, don't we?" I finally said, my voice cutting through the stillness. The question hung between u
