STILL AIR

The low sound of an approaching engine suddenly cut through the quiet street before headlights swept across the pavement beside us and a Bugatti Chiron rolled smoothly to a stop near the curb while the tinted window slowly slid down.

Both Ivy and I turned immediately toward the car.

Jace leaned slightly against the driver’s seat while his gaze settled directly on me, and almost instantly the cold sharpness in his expression softened faintly.

“Come on,” he said calmly.

The air around us strangely shifted the moment he arrived, and even Ivy seemed to notice it because her posture subtly stiffened while her eyes remained fixed on him in uneasy silence.

I turned toward her and we stared at each other briefly before she suddenly stepped forward and pulled me into a quick hug.

I hugged her back softly before walking toward the passenger side of the car, but before I could touch the handle, the door unlocked automatically from the inside.

Ivy’s eyes widened slightly at that while I slid into the passenger seat quietly and pulled the door shut as she remained standing outside staring at the car like her thoughts had completely frozen in place.

“What’s she waiting for?” Jace asked calmly while glancing at me.

I turned toward Ivy, only to find her still standing outside staring at the black Bugatti Chiron like her mind had completely stopped processing everything happening around her.

“He asked what you’re waiting for,” I repeated.

Ivy frowned in confusion while stepping closer to the car. “What?”

“He said get in.”

For a second she remained frozen in place before quickly opening the back door with careful hesitation like she was afraid touching anything too hard would cost more money than she had ever seen in her life.

Then she climbed inside stiffly while her widened eyes moved slowly across the luxurious interior.

“Good evening, sir,” she greeted quickly, nervousness obvious in her voice.

Jace kept his gaze fixed on the road ahead. “You’re welcome.”

Ivy blinked in confusion at the response before realization slowly crossed her face.

“Right… thank you,” she corrected herself quickly.

“You’re welcome,” Jace replied once again in the same calm, unreadable tone before the car finally pulled away into the night.

******

XAVIER'S POV✦

◈DAYS LATER - AT JACE'S MANSION◈

I flinched in shock, instinctively shifting farther into the sofa the moment my eyes landed on the woman standing near the entrance beside a younger lady. Both carried a regal kind of beauty that felt unnaturally cold, their expressions calm, savage, and completely emotionless, yet despite how still they stood, the pressure filling the room felt so unbearably heavy it made my chest tighten slightly.

For a moment, I simply stared at them while the older woman tilted her head slowly, examining me carefully before the faintest smile curved against her lips.

“Hello, handsome.”

I blinked at her innocently while she casually lifted her gaze toward the staircase before looking back at me again.

“Nobody home?”

Slowly and with visible hesitation, I raised my hands and signed carefully, asking who she was, but the moment her eyes followed my movements, one of her brows arched faintly before something softer settled across her featur

es.

“Poor thing,” she murmured quietly as she stepped toward me.