LOGINCole’s PovThe Calloway mansion had everything anyone could ever want. It had more rooms than we could use, security stationed everywhere, and staff ready to help at any moment. Still, every morning I noticed the same thing. Sienna would look out the window with that same distant expression, one that never quite went away no matter how good the day had been.She smiled for Ava. She smiled for me too. But she never looked completely comfortable here.One evening, after Ava had fallen asleep, I found Sienna sitting alone on the terrace. I walked over with two mugs of tea and handed her one.“I thought you might want this.”“Thank you,” she said, wrapping her hands around the warm mug.I sat beside her, and neither of us spoke for a few moments. Finally she looked at me. “Can I tell you something without you getting upset?”“You can tell me anything.”She took a deep breath. “I don’t want to live here forever.”“I know,” I said.She looked surprised. “You do?”“I’ve known for a while now
Sienna’s PovI told myself I was finally starting to breathe again after everything that had happened. The investigations were still ongoing, but for the first time in weeks, life felt almost normal. That feeling lasted exactly one morning.I dropped Ava off at school and planned to stop by a café before heading to work. Cole had already left for an early meeting with Roman, so I was on my own. As I unlocked my car, I noticed a black sedan parked across the street, its windows tinted too dark to see inside. I looked at it for a second, told myself it was nothing, and drove off.At the first traffic light, I checked my mirror and found the same sedan stopped behind me. I frowned, reminding myself that plenty of cars looked similar and that coincidences happened all the time. The light turned green, and I drove another few blocks. The sedan stayed right behind me.I made a right turn I didn’t actually need to make, just to test it. The sedan turned too, and my hands tightened around the
Cole’s PovI held Sienna’s hand tightly as I guided her through the familiar streets back to the hotel where our story first began four years ago, and I could feel the slight tremble in her fingers even though she stayed right beside me without pulling away. “I need to take you back there Sienna because I cannot stand this distance between us anymore and I want to fix everything right here in the place where I first fell so hard for you,” I told her softly as we approached the building that looked a bit newer with fresh paint and updated lights but still carried that same warm feeling from before.We stepped inside and rode the elevator up to the rooftop terrace, and when the doors opened I let out a deep breath because the terrace had stayed exactly the same with its string lights overhead and the comfortable seating areas tucked away where we could talk without anyone bothering us. “This spot right here is exactly how I remember it Sienna,” I said as I led her to a quiet bench nea
Sienna’s PovThe day at the lake had been perfect. For a few hours, I had forgotten about Victor. I had forgotten about the investigations. I had forgotten about the files.When we returned to the Calloway estate, everything changed again.Roman was waiting in the library, looking tired. “I didn’t want to ruin your day.”I smiled a little. “You didn’t.”“I just received something from the investigators.”The smile disappeared from my face. “What is it?”“They recovered another document.”Cole frowned. “I thought everything important was destroyed.”“So did I.” Roman held up a single sheet of paper. “It was hidden inside another folder.”I looked at it. “My name?”He nodded. “I’m sorry.”Cole immediately looked at me. “You don’t have to read it tonight.”I wanted to agree. Instead, I held out my hand. “I need to.”Roman hesitated before giving me the paper. I unfolded it slowly. At first it looked like every other surveillance report—dates, times, observations. Then my eyes stopped on
Cole’s PovFor the first time in weeks, I turned my phone off. Roman had called twice before breakfast, the investigators had already sent three messages, and the board wanted another meeting. I ignored all of them.Sienna looked at me from across the kitchen. “You turned your phone off.”“I did.”She smiled. “I never thought I’d see the day.”“I needed a break.” I walked closer. “We all need one.”Ava looked up from the table. “A break from what?”I smiled. “From grown-up problems.”She nodded seriously. “I don’t like grown-up problems.”“I don’t either.”She grinned. “So what are we doing today?”I looked at Sienna. “I was thinking we could disappear for a few hours.”“Disappear?”“Somewhere quiet.”“No reporters?”“None.”“No meetings?”“Not one.”“No investigations?”“Not today.”Sienna smiled. “That sounds perfect.”Ava clapped happily. “Adventure!”I laughed. “Exactly.”An hour later we arrived in a small lakeside town nearly two hours away. The streets were quiet, children rode
Sienna’s PovI did not want to go back to the abandoned safe house. The last time we had been there, everything had felt cold and wrong. Now we were standing outside the same building again.Roman looked at me before unlocking the front door. “You don’t have to do this.”I looked at him. “You said there was something I needed to see.”“There is.”I took a deep breath. “Then let’s finish it.”Cole reached for my hand. “I’m staying with you.”“I know.”“I’m not leaving your side.”I gave him a small smile. “Thank you.”We walked inside together. The investigators were already searching through the damaged rooms, boxes filled with evidence covering the tables. One of the investigators walked toward Roman. “We recovered everything that survived the fire.”Roman nodded. “Anything important?”The investigator looked at me. “Some of it.”My stomach tightened. Roman turned to me. “Sienna. There was a file here with your name on it.”“I remember.”“We found part of it.”“Only part?”He nodded.







