Chapter 204: Happy, Little Boy?
The timing of the photo was the worst part.
It arrived the instant Elias stepped out of the bathroom, towel in his hand, water still trailing from his hair.
[System Theta: Host, Victoria Frost is watching you.]
Elias looked at the screen for another second, then lowered the phone.
The photo had been taken from behind. Pale skin. Wet hair. The clean line of his back under the bathroom light. No blur. No awkward angle. Whoever had taken it had done so from far enough away to remain safe, yet close enough to make the distance feel meaningless.
He did not panic.
He turned, walked back to the exact place where he must have been standing when the picture was taken, then lifted his eyes toward the window.
Outside, the city was layered in glass and dark. Across the street, a tower rose above the block, each floor broken into cold square panes. One of those panes caught a faint glimmer, too small for an ordinary person to notice.
Elias stared at it.
