Silas didn’t speak.
Not at first.
He just stared at Cody like the words hadn’t landed right, like they were still floating somewhere above him waiting to be understood.
“What… what did you say?” Silas finally managed, his voice thin.
Cody swallowed hard. “She’s gone, Sir. Madam Eris…” His voice cracked. “The responders… they said…” He couldn’t finish.
Silas shook his head sharply, almost offended by the idea.
“Dead? Eris? No.” His chest rose and fell too fast.
“That’s impossible. This has to be a joke.”
Cody opened his mouth, but a knock thundered through the office before he could speak again. Two uniformed police officers stepped inside, followed by a pair of firefighters who still smelled faintly of smoke.
Silas’s entire body stilled.
The lead officer spoke gently, too gently, and that was when Silas’s rejection began to falter. People only used that tone when the truth was devastating.
“Mr. Cross,” the officer said as he removed his cap, “we’re here to inform you of an incident. A fire broke out in one of your properties. A woman was found inside. She was identified as—”
“Don’t say her name.” Silas’s voice cut through the room like glass. “Not until you’re absolutely sure.”
The firefighter stepped forward, holding a blackened folder of documents.
“Sir, the blaze was already too intense when we arrived. We did everything we could to assess the scene. The… the body was found near the back room, consistent with—”
“Enough.” Silas stepped back as if struck. His eyes flickered to the sealed photos the firefighter carried.
“That’s… that’s not her. It can’t be.”
His breath trembled. Something inside him began to crack, too sharp and too sudden to hide. He pressed a hand to his chest, frowning as if he didn’t recognize the feeling twisting violently inside him.
“Sir,” the officer said softly, “I’m sorry.”
Silas didn’t answer. Couldn’t.
“Silas!”
Elara’s voice pierced the tension, her hand covering her mouth with wide, tear-filled eyes.
“Oh god… is it true? Is Eris really… is she…” She covered her mouth with a dramatic sob.
Silas stiffened.
Elara glanced hastily at the firefighters.
“How could she die in a fire?” she demanded, her voice rising. “Are you telling me you couldn’t save her? Not even try?”
She shook her head frantically. “No… no! That’s impossible. She shouldn’t be dead!”
Her wails echoed off the walls, too rehearsed for anyone truly grieving, but she made sure her back was turned whenever her tears dried a little too quickly.
The firefighter gave a tired sigh. “Ma’am, we did everything we could. The fire was already roaring when we arrived. The structural damage—”
“Then you didn’t arrive soon enough!” she snapped.
“Elara,” Silas murmured, but even he sounded distant, lost.
The firefighter opened the folder and tapped the burnt, sealed photos inside. “Sir, this is the position where the body was discovered. The dental records—”
Silas turned his head away sharply, jaw tightening. He didn’t want to see. Couldn’t see.
Elara sniffed loudly, wiping her eyes with deliberate jerky movements.
“This can’t be real,” she cried. “She… she can’t just die like that. Why would a fire suddenly happen? And why now, of all times?”
She shook her head and leaned against Silas as if seeking comfort. “Silas, she shouldn’t be gone. It should’ve—”
She stopped herself.
But Silas heard it.
Everyone heard it.
“It must be someone else,” she corrected quickly, her voice trembling with fabricated anguish. “It can’t be her.”
For a moment, she let her face crumple in exaggerated despair.
Inside, however, her heart drummed with triumph.
Finally.
Finally Eris was gone.
Finally she didn’t have to pretend anymore.
She had been planning to do something about me once the child in her stomach was born. She thought it would be quite a long battle, maybe a few years, before she could finally take the position of Luna beside Silas.
Who would have thought that such an accident would occur?
My death was a blessing, and she couldn’t wish for more. But she had to pretend for a while, to show that she cared.
She glanced sideways to see if Silas would pull her closer, comfort her, maybe even agree with her outrage…
She froze.
Because Silas didn’t show the reaction she expected. Every time she cried like this, Silas would gather her in his arms to comfort her.
Now, he wasn’t even looking at her.
He was staring at the firefighters with narrowed, calculating eyes.
“Elara’s right,” he muttered. “How can you be sure the body is Eris?”
His voice gained strength, anger, something fierce. “Where is the proof?”
The firefighters exchanged glances.
Elara blinked. She had not expected that. Her mouth opened slightly in surprise.
“Y-yes!” she quickly added, struggling to keep up with his shift. “Silas is right. Maybe you got it wrong. You should investigate again.”
Silas stepped forward, his voice turning harsh. “You’re telling me she died without anyone seeing her leave the property? Without any witness? Without any confirmation except a charred body?”
His tone sharpened. “Do you think I’m stupid?”
“No, Sir,” the officer answered calmly. “But the evidence at the scene and the dental records—”
“Re-examine it,” Silas demanded. “All of it. I want everything verified.”
The firefighters nodded reluctantly. “We will, Sir.”
Elara nodded along eagerly, pretending to support him while inside, panic crawled up her spine. She thought he’d crumble, not question. She thought he’d cling to her, not to hope.
She forced a tremulous sigh. “Silas… I just can’t… I can’t believe she’s gone. It hurts so much.”
But Silas didn’t look at her.
He was staring at the floor, his fist clenched so tightly his knuckles were white.
Everything in him looked… wrong.
Like a man trying to hold himself together with his bare hands.
Silas wasn’t a man easily shaken.
He didn’t panic.
He didn’t break.
But now, he was trembling.
Before anyone could speak again, his secretary rushed to his side, face pale.
“Sir… sir!” he called out breathlessly.
Silas snapped his head up, his emotions swiftly shuttered behind a cold mask. “What?”
The secretary swallowed. “The stocks… They’re falling.”
Silas’s brows furrowed in immediate fury. “What do you mean falling? Why?”
His voice thundered across the area.
The secretary hesitated. He looked at everyone present, then leaned in closer.
“It’s because of the letter,” he whispered. “The suicide letter…”
Silas’s eyes went wide.
“What letter?” His voice was a low growl.
“The one Madam Eris posted online,” the secretary replied, almost stammering. “It’s everywhere, sir. People think she… took her own life.”
