FAZER LOGINThe auctioneer's cadence moved through the wall. I had built something without him. That was still true. It would stay true. Whatever I said next didn't touch it. "I don't know," I said. "That's the honest answer. Not the managed version." I met his gaze. "I don't know if what's left is enough to
Alicia's POV The older man was still talking. "Seven years," he said. "Four jurisdictions. We moved water infrastructure across borders that hadn't spoken to each other in a generation." His hands traced corridors in the air between us. "The archive is the proof it happened. That it worked." He tu
“You entered without cause,” I said. “You stayed without one.” “I don’t know what this is between you two but—” “My wife.” No variation in tone. No additional weight needed. Alicia’s hand lifted a little, then halted mid-motion and settled again without completing the gesture. The woman exhaled
Edward’s POV “Forty thousand. Do I have forty-five?” The paddle was already raised. Alicia’s hand remained under mine, unchanged in position, as though neither of us had adjusted to its presence since it settled there. “Forty-five.” I raised. “Fifty. Fifty-five.” On the left, a man leaned forw
The fifth lot began. Edward moved to speak to someone at the side of the room. I watched the auctioneer. She crossed the room toward him. He turned when she spoke. She laughed. It had worked before, that laugh. I scanned the sixth lot. Mixed media, authenticated 2019, provenance verified. Her h
Alicia's POV Volkov was already at the door when we came in. His eyes went to my dress and came back up. Lazily. He turned to Edward, and they shook hands. It ran a half-second longer than it needed. "You both came," he said. "You invited us," Edward said. "I invite many people. They don't alwa
The apartment was dim when I got back. I didn’t bother with the lights. Evening slid in through the curtains, turning everything the color of old photographs. I still hadn’t unpacked. My bag sat by the wall, half-open, clothes wrinkled from the drive and the days before it. I hadn’t touched them. I
He didn't speak. Didn't move. Just stared like seeing me like this broke something he wasn't prepared to carry. Elena's voice cut through the quiet. Fierce. "Don't act confused. You ignored her for days. She survived that alone. Showing up now doesn't erase any of it." The air tightened. Edward
Edward’s POV I woke to silence. Not the soft kind that lets you breathe. This silence had edges. Weight. No Alicia moving through the house. No footsteps. No proof that anything in this mansion still answered to me. The light spilling across the bedroom felt too bright. Too accusatory. She'd dest
Alicia's POV I woke slowly, the way people do when their body is more tired than their mind. Light filtered through Elena’s half-drawn curtains, soft, pale, nothing like the harsh brightness of Edward's estate. My muscles felt sluggish but not painful, just used… overused. The blanket carried a h







