The soft crackling of the fireplace filled the quiet study as Eleanor placed her phone down on the end table, her face solemn. The room was dimly lit, the only sources of light being the fire’s glow and the brass floor lamp behind Rickard’s leather chair. Outside the window, the rain continued its quiet descent, the world wrapped in a grey haze.
Rickard glanced up from the document he had been reading. His shirt sleeves were rolled up, his tie loosened after a long day of meetings. He was still trying to hold the company together after the fallout, and the weight of it all showed in the lines under his eyes.
“You’re quiet,” he noted, setting the paper aside.
Eleanor folded her hands in her lap and looked at him seriously. “I saw Emily today.”
He tilted his head slightly. “Is she alrigh
