The villa's external signal was severed completely at sunrise.
Avery stared at the bars on her phone, but they remained empty-a dead brick in her hand. Only the time remained, glowing with a mocking precision on the screen: 6:47 AM. The silence in the house was absolute, heavy with the weight of things unsaid. Dominic had vanished into the shadows of Obsidian City yesterday and hadn't returned. His absence was a physical pressure, a cold void that seemed to suck the warmth out of the rooms.
She hadn't slept; every time she closed her eyes, she saw star-shaped scars and black business cards. Her restless tossing had eventually woken Dorothea, who was now sitting cross-legged on the bed, her small face pale and hauntingly serious.
The little girl was focused on a new drawing. On the paper
