THE SHADOW
The city looked almost peaceful from thirty floors up. A lie, of course. But a beautiful one. I stood on the balcony of my penthouse, coffee in one hand, cigarette in the other, watching the skyline bleed into morning light. Smoke curled around my fingers, warm against the cold air.
Below me, the world moved like ants. Above me, clouds drifted like they had nowhere to be.
And inside me? A storm.
Behind me, soft footsteps padded across the marble floor.
Ava.
She never learned how to walk quietly. She wandered around my penthouse wearing nothing but a pair of black panties and the confidence of a woman who thought she mattered. She didn’t. But she served a purpose.
She paused near the window, stretching like a cat, waiting for me to look at her. I didn’t.
Instead, I exhale
