The mansion was quiet.
Too quiet.
The living room lights had dimmed automatically, leaving the vast space washed in soft amber shadows. The marble floors reflected the glow from the city outside the towering glass windows.
Leah had fallen asleep.
Her head rested against Izana's shoulder, her blonde hair spilling across his arm like pale silk.
Her breathing was slow.
Steady.
Peaceful.
Izana hadn't moved for a long time.
Minutes passed.
Maybe longer.
The world outside the mansion stretched across the horizon in glittering lights. Cars moved like distant sparks far below the hill the mansion stood on.
Inside, everything was still.
Except him.
Carefully, Izana shifted slightly.
Leah stirred.
Her hand tightened faintly in the fabric of his shirt.
He waited.
Her breathing evened out again.
Slowly, gently, Izana slid one arm beneath her knees and the other behind her back.
Then he lifted her.
Leah murmured softly in her sleep but didn't wake.
She was light in his arms.
Izana carried her across the enormous living room.
Past the quiet hallways.
Past the long glass walls that overlooked the dark gardens outside.
The mansion's staircase went straight upward in a smooth arc of white marble and steel.
Izana climbed it silently.
The second floor was darker.
Quieter.
He reached the bedroom and pushed the door open with his shoulder.
The room was illuminated only by the faint silver glow of moonlight spilling through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
He crossed the room and laid Leah gently on the bed.
She shifted beneath the covers, turning slightly toward the empty space beside her as if instinctively searching for him.
Izana stood there for a moment.
Watching her.
Making sure she was still asleep.
Her blonde hair spread across the pillow.
Her breathing soft.
Calm.
Alive.
Then he turned.
And left the room.
The hallway outside felt colder.
Quieter.
His footsteps echoed faintly against the polished floors as he walked toward the far end of the corridor.
His office door waited there.
He stepped inside.
Lights flickered on automatically.
The room was large and minimal.
Dark wood.
Steel accents.
One entire wall filled with glowing screens displaying the mansion's security feeds.
Cameras covering the gates.
The gardens.
The perimeter walls.
Dante stood near the desk.
Arms crossed.
Waiting.
"You took your time," Dante said.
Izana closed the door behind him.
"She fell asleep."
Dante nodded once.
Then his expression shifted.
The casual edge vanished.
Now he looked serious.
"We have a problem."
Izana walked toward the desk.
"What kind?"
Dante pushed away from the wall.
"The agents from earlier."
Izana said nothing.
"They reported back to their unit," Dante continued. "The task force knows you escaped."
Izana glanced briefly at the security monitors glowing across the wall.
"They already knew I would."
Dante exhaled through his nose.
"They're embarrassed."
"That makes them dangerous."
"They won't stop now."
Izana leaned slightly against the edge of the desk.
Silent.
Dante watched him.
"They'll either try to arrest you again…"
He paused.
"…or they'll kill you."
Izana's expression didn't change.
"They've been trying that for years."
Dante ran a hand through his hair.
"This time is different."
A quiet silence filled the office.
Finally Dante spoke again.
"I'm doubling security around the mansion."
Izana nodded once.
"Do it."
Dante moved toward the door.
Then stopped.
"You should get some sleep," he added.
Izana didn't answer.
Dante smirked faintly.
"Right. Of course you won't."
Then he left.
The door closed softly behind him.
The office fell silent again.
Only the faint hum of electronics filled the room.
Izana stood still for a moment.
Then he opened the desk drawer.
The velvet box sat exactly where he had left it.
He picked it up slowly.
For a moment he simply held it.
Earlier that day he had been tied to a metal chair in a dark interrogation room.
Beaten.
Questioned.
Hours away from disappearing forever.
And yet here he was.
Standing in his office.
Holding the future in his hand.
The lid of the box opened with a soft click.
The diamond caught the light instantly.
Bright.
Sharp.
Beautiful.
Izana stared at it quietly.
Leah's face flashed through his mind.
Her voice on the phone.
The fear in it.
The way she had whispered his name.
The way she had looked when he walked through the door tonight.
Relief.
Anger.
Love.
He closed the box slowly.
Then placed it back inside the drawer.
Hidden again.
Safe.
The drawer slid shut with a quiet sound.
A moment later footsteps echoed in the hallway outside.
Soft.
Barely audible.
Izana's eyes lifted toward the door.
It opened slowly.
Leah stood there.
Her blonde hair was messy from sleep.
She wore one of his shirts.
The sleeves hung past her hands.
Her eyes found him immediately.
"You disappeared again."
Izana leaned back against the desk slightly.
"You should be asleep."
Leah stepped inside the room.
"You should be too."
She studied him carefully.
"You didn't come back to bed."
"I had work."
Leah crossed her arms slightly.
"You always have work."
Izana didn't reply.
Her eyes drifted toward the desk briefly.
Then back to him.
"Were you just standing here in the dark?"
"Thinking."
Leah stepped closer.
The tension in her shoulders softened.
"You scared me today."
Her voice was quieter now.
Honest.
Izana looked at her.
"I know."
She stopped in front of him.
Close enough that he could see the faint redness around her eyes from earlier.
"I thought I lost you," she said softly.
The words settled heavily between them.
Izana didn't respond immediately.
Instead he reached out and gently brushed a strand of blonde hair away from her face.
"I'm here."
Leah searched his eyes.
"You could have died."
"Maybe."
Her jaw tightened.
"That's not funny."
"I wasn't joking."
A quiet silence filled the room again.
Leah exhaled slowly.
"You're impossible."
"Probably."
She shook her head.
Then reached forward and took his hand.
Her fingers were warm.
"Come back to bed."
Izana hesitated for just a moment.
His eyes flicked briefly toward the desk.
Toward the drawer.
Toward the ring hidden inside.
Not yet.
Soon.
But not tonight.
Leah gently tugged his hand.
"Izana."
He looked back at her.
Then nodded once.
"Alright."
They left the office together.
The hallway lights dimmed automatically behind them as they walked.
The mansion returned to silence.
Upstairs, the bedroom waited.
And inside the office…
Inside the desk drawer…
The ring remained.
Patient.
Waiting.
Soon.