I stood in the quiet shadows of the foyer, lingering by my packed bags. Pulling out my phone, I typed a message on our encrypted channel.
"Vincent. I require a sit-down for lunch. I have critical information regarding the Family to deliver."
I hit send, watching as the delivery receipt appeared instantly.
I waited five agonizing minutes. The read receipt did not trigger.
Following a sudden, dark impulse, I opened the social media tracker. Elena had just posted a picture of a steaming coffee cup.
Vincent's account had commented thirty seconds ago: "Got your favorite roast. See you in five."
I stared at the screen, the glowing pixels wavering before my eyes. The air in my lungs felt thick and heavy, each breath tasting of rust and blood.
With a steady, deliberate motion, I copied my message. I pasted it directly under his comment on Elena's public post.
Three seconds later, my comment vanished. He had deleted it.
Almost immediately, my encrypted phone buzzed in my palm. A text from Vincent: "Busy with Family matters. No time."
I bypassed the text interface entirely and dialed his secure number directly.
He answered on the fourth ring, his tone clipped and irritated. "What is it, Seraphina? I told you I am busy."
I placed my knife flat against the edge of a porcelain plate I had carried from the kitchen; the sharp clink of metal against ceramic punctuated my words. "Meet me at twelve-thirty at the Italian restaurant across from the Syndicate front. If you fail to appear, the consequences for our alliance will be permanent."
I hung up before he could reply, severing the connection with a sharp click.
At twelve fifteen, I walked into the high-end Italian restaurant. The perimeter was heavily guarded by our soldiers, their dark suits stark against the opulent decor.
I slid into a private, shadowed booth in the back corner. And I waited.
At one ten in the afternoon, the heavy glass front doors opened. Vincent walked in.
He looked commanding and dangerous, and the soldiers at the door dipped their heads in deference to the power he carried in his very posture.
Then I saw her.
Elena was trailing closely behind him, wearing a soft pink sweater that seemed a fragile, alien thing in this world of ours. She looked small next to his imposing frame, a delicate ornament he had chosen to display before me.
They walked to my booth. Vincent slid into the seat across from me, his expression unreadable.
Elena slid into the booth right next to him, pressing herself into his space. She did not ask for permission.
"Hi, Seraphina," Elena said, her voice breathy and high. "I saw the comments earlier. I wanted to tag along. I hope you do not mind."
I kept my eyes fixed entirely on Vincent. My face was a mask of cold, impenetrable fury.
"Explain this," I said.
Vincent sighed, running a tired hand through his dark hair. "I had to secure Elena's transport first. That is why I was delayed. Let us just order."
A waiter rushed over, sensing the tension but masking it with professional grace.
"I will have the veal chop," I told the waiter, not breaking eye contact with Vincent. "And replace my wine with a glass of warm water."
Vincent frowned slightly at the warm water request, but he did not ask the reason for it.
"Oh, Vincent," Elena said, leaning intimately against his shoulder. "We should share the couple's seafood platter. It looks amazing."
Vincent looked at the menu, then glanced at me. The cold, unforgiving stare I gave him made him hesitate.
"No," he said to Elena, shifting slightly away from her touch. "Just get your own plate today."
The food arrived in short order, and I ate in dead, measured silence.
Elena talked the entire time. She chattered about movies and gossiped about rival territories as if this were a casual Sunday brunch.
Vincent answered her. He laughed at her jokes, leaning in when she spoke, offering her the attentiveness he had so callously denied me.
They bantered with the exact same effortless chemistry Vincent and I used to share, a bitter realization that settled heavily in my gut.
I set my fork down. I drank my warm water. I watched them as if I were observing a play about two strangers.
Vincent wiped his mouth with a linen napkin. He finally looked at me, the amusement fading from his features.
"Right," he said. "What was the critical information?"
I looked at him, and then I looked at the woman sitting pressed against his side.
"It is Family business," I said coldly. "Meant for your ears only. Since you brought a civilian, the meeting is concluded."
I rose from my seat, smoothing the front of my coat. I drew a hundred-dollar bill from my pocket and let it fall to the table, where it settled next to his plate.
"How are you getting back?" Vincent asked. His brow furrowed, and a brief flash of guilt finally pierced the arrogance in his dark eyes.
"I have arranged my own secure transport," I said, my tone leaving no room for argument. "Go escort Elena."
He reached across the table, trying to grab my hand in a rare show of desperation.
I stepped back smoothly, watching as his fingers closed around empty air.
"I will come back to the penthouse early tonight," Vincent said, his voice lower now, laced with an unspoken apology. "We will spend some time together."
I did not answer him. I simply turned and walked out of the restaurant, leaving the wreckage of our partnership behind me.
Upon returning to the penthouse, I stood in the center of the sprawling living room, staring at the cold finery that had slowly suffocated me over the last year.
With a slow, deliberate breath, I walked through the silent halls, committing the chill of this place to memory so that I might never be tempted to look back.
I walked back to the foyer where it had all started.
Kneeling down, I aligned my two suitcases perfectly with the edge of the marble tile, ready to walk away forever.
