Page 24 of Veil of Secrets

And maybe that’s what sticks with me.

Because most people break in silence.

She cracks loud.

And she stays standing.

I step over the second body and head for the boardwalk.

Luca follows. Footsteps careful behind mine.

“You ever going to explain why this girl matters?” he asks after a few yards.

“No.”

“Figures.”

He lights a cigarette as we reach the first set of stairs. The wind snatches half the smoke as it leaves his lips.

“She’s already in,” I say.

“She knows that?”

“No.”

I keep walking.

His footsteps pause, then catch up again.

I don’t turn around.

The truth is, I don’t know what Elara’s going to do.

But I do know what I’ve done.

The message has been sent.

To Marco.

To the city.

To her.

If Elara’s going to be part of this, she’d better be ready to get her hands dirty too.

Chapter 5 – Elara

The boardwalk is finally quiet.

No yelling. No bass thumping from cracked speakers. No drunk feet stumbling over discarded popcorn bags or broken flip-flops.

Just me, a half-dead cigarette, and a fog creeping in from the sea like it’s trying to erase the whole damn city.

I sit on a bench that’s older than my trauma. The wood sags under me, splintered at the edges, like it’s been waiting for years to collapse under someone like me.

The sea’s close enough that mist beads on my arms. The cool air scratches the back of my throat, and I pull my jacket tighter even though it’s damp.

I haven’t slept.

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