Sophia
A single moment to cherish.
The guest house was silent, wrapped in the soft hum of night. Outside, the distant chirping of crickets filled the air, but inside, everything was still. Too still.
My body weighed heavily with exhaustion as I sat on the edge of the bed, but my mind wouldn’t let me rest.
The events of the night played in a never-ending loop behind my eyes—the kidnapping, the explosion, Ricci dragging me out of the wreckage as though I were something worth saving.
I hugged myself like it would be enough to keep the memories away.
But nothing could shake the feeling of helplessness that had burrowed deep within my bones.
A door clicked closed behind me. I didn’t need to turn around to know it was Ricci. He loomed like a sacred tree, tall and implacable. His gaze se
