Nobody slept that night.Ivy heard voices moving through the house until well past three, low and urgent, boots on gravel outside her window, the occasional crackle of a radio cutting through the quiet. She sat wrapped in a blanket by the window, watching torch beams sweep the treeline over and over, and didn't bother pretending to herself she'd be closing her eyes anytime soon.Every so often she caught fragments through the glass, a name here, a location there, none of it enough to piece into anything solid. At one point she saw Nero himself cross the courtyard, phone pressed to his ear, moving with the kind of tightly controlled urgency she'd only seen from him once before, that night in the rain with the man on his knees. Whatever he was hearing on that call, it wasn't good news.By seven, exhausted and restless in equal measure, she gave up entirely and went looking for coffee.She found the kitchen occupied. A man she didn't recognise sat at the long table, sleeves rolled, lapto
Last Updated : 2026-07-19
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