Chapter 44: The Grandview Promenade
The early afternoon sun reflected off the polished flagstones of Crown Avenue as cold autumn breezes swept down from the northern ridges of Grandview. Under the towering glass canopy of the Imperial Gallerie, shoppers dressed in tailored wool coats and fur wraps strolled past brass-framed shop windows displaying Swiss timepieces and French perfumes.
Ethan walked slowly through the wide central rotunda, holding Ada by the hand.
She wore a simple, warm white coat over dark trousers, her hair brushed into two neat braids that rested over her collar. Her hazel eyes darted from one towering archway to the next, filled with genuine wonder at the sheer scale of the city after three agonizing years of confinement in basement wards.
Walking half a pace behind
