Chapter 34: The Reluctant Departure
Chapter 34: The Reluctant Departure
Leaving the lake house felt like tearing away a piece of my soul. I kissed Elara's forehead while she slept, breathing in the scent of baby shampoo and innocence. I hugged my father, who slipped a familiar, heavy steel object into my jacket pocket without saying a word.
"Just in case," the old man muttered.
May you like
Claire drove me to the private airfield. We didn't say much. The silence was filled with five years of peace that we were desperately trying not to lose.
As I boarded the Gulfstream jet, I looked back. Claire stood by the car, the wind whipping her hair around her face. I burned that image into my mind. If things went wrong in Vienna, that was the memory I would take with me to the end.
