Chapter 5

Minah did not thank Antonio.

Not immediately.

She stood in the lobby long after Coffee had been escorted out, her pulse still racing, her hands clenched at her sides. She was used to fear wearing a familiar face. Coffee had perfected that. Antonio wore fear differently. Quiet. Controlled. Predictable in a way that was far more dangerous.

“You should not have come down here,” Antonio said at last.

Minah turned toward him. “You should not have followed me.”

His expression did not change. “You were not safe.”

“I did not ask for protection.”

“No,” he agreed calmly. “You did not.”

The truth of that hung between them.

Minah exhaled slowly. “You escalated things.”

Antonio tilted his head slightly. “He escalated when he followed you to your workplace.”

“That is not how the law will see it.”

Antonio’s gaze sharpened. “The law does not see everything.”

She folded her arms. “That is exactly what concerns me about you.”

Something like approval flickered across his face. “Good.”

They walked back toward Ava’s room in silence. The hallway felt different now. Charged. As if lines had been crossed that could not be redrawn.

Ava was awake, coloring carefully within the lines of a book Joseph had brought. When she saw Antonio, her face brightened.

“Papa.”

He softened instantly. “How do you feel.”

“My head is less spinny,” she said seriously. “My leg still hurts.”

“That will pass,” Minah said gently. “Healing takes time.”

Ava studied her thoughtfully. “You talk nice even when people are mean.”

Minah smiled faintly. Antonio watched the exchange closely.

“She listens to tone,” Minah added. “Children always do.”

Antonio nodded once.

Later, Minah reviewed discharge notes at the nurses’ station. Her phone vibrated again. A message, this time not from Coffee.

Unknown number.

You were followed from the parking structure yesterday.

Her breath caught.

Another message appeared.

Not him. Someone else.

Minah’s fingers tightened around the phone. She scanned the hallway instinctively.

Antonio appeared beside her without warning.

“You felt it,” he said quietly.

She looked up. “Felt what.”

“Being watched,” he replied. “It changes the air.”

She hesitated. Then handed him the phone.

Antonio read the messages once. His jaw set.

“Who sent this,” she asked.

“That does not matter yet,” he said. “What matters is that he is not alone.”

Minah’s stomach twisted. “Coffee.”

“No,” Antonio said. “Coffee likes to be seen.”

She swallowed. “Then who.”

“Someone doing what he does not want traced back to him,” Antonio replied. “Which means you are no longer dealing with obsession alone.”

Her voice dropped. “You said you were not fighting my battles.”

“I am not,” he said evenly. “I am removing variables.”

She met his gaze. “That sounds like the same thing.”

“It is not,” he replied. “Battles are loud. This will be quiet.”

That frightened her more than Coffee ever had.

A nurse approached with paperwork. “Doctor Williams, radiology cleared Ava for discharge tomorrow morning if no symptoms worsen.”

Minah nodded. “Thank you.”

Antonio turned to Ava. “You will come home.”

“Yes,” Ava said happily. Then she frowned. “Papa, can she come too.”

Both adults froze.

Minah laughed softly. “I do not think that is appropriate.”

Antonio considered it far too seriously. “She saved you.”

“I like her,” Ava insisted.

Antonio looked at Minah. “She is perceptive.”

“She is nine,” Minah replied.

“And correct,” he said.

Silence settled again.

Minah finally spoke. “When Ava is discharged, I will step back. Professionally.”

Antonio’s gaze darkened. “You will do no such thing.”

“This is not personal,” she said.

“It became personal the moment he followed you,” Antonio replied. “And the moment you stood between me and my fear.”

Her chest tightened. “I do not belong to you.”

“I know,” Antonio said quietly. “That is why I am careful.”

Careful.

The word did not belong to men like him.

Yet here he was, measuring distance, watching her reactions, controlling himself in ways that felt deliberate.

Dangerous.

And for the first time since her divorce began, Minah wondered if safety could exist inside a storm.