018: A New Beginning

The atmosphere inside Blackwood Mansion gradually returned to normal.

The guards remained alert, but the panic from the previous night had settled. Damian had ordered everyone to carry on with their duties as usual.

Fear was exactly what their enemy wanted.

He refused to give them that satisfaction.

Elena walked into the dining room that morning, surprised to see Damian already having breakfast.

He looked up when she entered.

"Good morning."

"Good morning," she replied with a small smile.

Mrs. Harper placed another plate on the table.

"You should eat while it's still warm."

Elena nodded and sat down.

For a few minutes, they ate in silence.

Then Damian broke it.

"I've been thinking."

Elena looked at him.

"You've been staying here for weeks now."

She lowered her eyes.

"I know."

"I don't want to be a burden."

Damian put down his fork.

"I never said you were."

"But I don't want you to feel trapped either."

She looked at him, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"I think it's time you started living again."

Elena frowned.

"Living?"

"You've spent too much time hiding from your past."

"It's time to focus on your future."

His words stayed with her.

For the first time in a long while, she found herself thinking about tomorrow instead of yesterday.

Later that afternoon, Damian asked Elena to meet him in his office.

She knocked gently.

"You wanted to see me?"

"Come in."

She stepped inside.

Damian slid a file across the desk.

"I need someone to help organize a community education project my company is sponsoring."

Elena looked at the file.

"I don't have much experience."

"You don't need experience."

"You need honesty."

She looked up.

"You trust me?"

"I wouldn't have asked if I didn't."

A warm feeling spread through Elena's chest.

It had been a long time since anyone believed in her.

"I'll do my best."

"I know you will."

Across the city, Adrian sat in his office, staring at his phone.

He had typed Elena's number three times.

Each time, he deleted it before pressing the call button.

He knew she probably wouldn't answer.

Still...

He wanted to hear her voice.

His assistant knocked on the door.

"Sir, your meeting starts in five minutes."

Adrian nodded absentmindedly.

As the assistant turned to leave, Adrian spoke again.

"Have you found any information about Elena?"

The assistant hesitated.

"Not yet, sir."

Adrian looked out the window.

"Keep looking."

"I won't stop until I find her."

That evening, Vanessa visited Adrian's apartment.

She had prepared his favorite meal herself.

"I thought we could have dinner together," she said with a smile.

Adrian thanked her politely, but his heart wasn't in it.

Throughout the meal, he barely spoke.

Vanessa noticed.

"You're somewhere else tonight."

"I'm just tired."

She studied him for a moment.

She knew that answer wasn't the truth.

After dinner, she quietly picked up the dishes.

As she passed the living room, she noticed Adrian staring at an old photo on his phone.

She couldn't see the screen clearly.

But she already knew whose picture it was.

Her smile disappeared.

No matter how hard she tried...

Elena still occupied a place in Adrian's heart.

And that frightened her more than anything else.

Back at Blackwood Mansion, Elena stood on the balcony outside her room.

The evening breeze brushed against her face.

For the first time in months, she felt a small sense of peace.

She smiled to herself.

Maybe...

Just maybe...

This was the beginning of a new chapter in her life.

From the garden below, Damian looked up and saw her smiling.

Without realizing it, he smiled too.

Neither of them noticed a camera lens hidden beyond the estate wall capturing that single moment.

Far away, someone received the photograph.

The sender wrote only one sentence.

"They're getting closer."

The reply came seconds later.

"Let them."