Mahira booked the flight that same evening — 9pm departure to arrive in Seoul in time to surprise Czar on his birthday. The 12th of June was three days away and she had made up her mind. She would stay for months if she had to. He would not be alone.
She locked the door behind her, pin entered, suitcase waiting at her feet. She bent down and pulled the wheels out, pressed the handle up and sighed.
"She broke you in a way no one could," she murmured.
Slow steps toward the main road, the cab already booked and on its way.
She reached the airport, checked the clock, checked her phone. Time enough. Her eyes exchanged quiet glances with a few ladies she recognized across the waiting area, but her mind stayed elsewhere — on Czar, on that letter, on how long he must have been carrying it alone.
Isha time arrived quietly. She raised her hands and whispered.
"Ya Allah, make this journey easy for me and ease the test of my child."
Then she made her way through to the flight area, found her seat, and sat down. Her thoughts did not move from him the entire time.
Back at the flat, Emris rubbed his temple and looked at the wardrobe.
"You can come out."
The door swung open and Caius stepped out — smiling like an idiot, completely unbothered, his thoughts still somewhere else entirely. Still on that first glance. Still on her.
Emris dropped onto the sofa and gestured lazily for him to sit.
"Interesting piece," Caius whispered, the smile still playing on his lips.
Emris rolled his eyes and let out a short whistle.
Caius blinked out of it. The smile disappeared.
"Defected piece," he muttered.
Emris frowned. "Sorry?"
"Nothing." Caius eye rolled and dropped onto the sofa beside him.
"So what made you come here?" Emris asked, his expression thoroughly done.
"We need to plan to take down the Prime Minister," Caius said, ruffling his hair and cracking his neck. "So father can take his place."
Emris scoffed and looked at him slowly. "Is this a child's task?" he said through gritted teeth.
Caius stood up in one motion, eyes narrowing.
"Think of a plan. The next election is in four months. We need to complete his life span before the due time." His hands slipped into his pockets.
Emris said nothing. There was nothing to say.
Caius turned and left, humming a song on his way out.
He pulled his mask on and slipped out through the back door, his heart still doing something he refused to acknowledge. Her face kept arriving uninvited behind his eyes.
His bodyguards waited at a distance. He ignored them and crossed to the opposite side of the road where the car sat waiting.
The door was opened for him and he got in, settling back as the engine started.
His eyes drifted to the window. The city moved past him in streaks of light and shadow.
A different emotion, his mind echoed quietly. But I cannot name what it is.
Her face again. That black coat. The way she moved through the flat like she already owned every answer in the room.
"Guards," he said, his voice flat and calm.
"Keep her picture in your mind — the one in the black coat. I need information about her."
"Yes, sir."
The car moved forward. Caius kept his eyes on the window and said nothing more.
Ava was leaning against the wall, lost in thought, when a car rolled past her.
Something felt strange for a brief second.
She couldn't place it.
Then she caught Elaya at a distance — signaling, subtle and quick.
The car that just passed. Caius. I saw him leaving Emris's house.
Ava kept her face neutral, pushed off the wall and moved forward at an easy pace, fingers already typing.
Let's meet at home.
She sent it and kept her eyes on the car ahead — watching it without watching it, slowing her steps just enough until it drifted out of sight completely.
Both of them reached Shah house at the same time.
The maids greeted them at the door. Neither of them responded with more than necessary. They moved straight to Ava's room — steps fast, no conversation, nothing said until the door clicked shut behind them.
"What the hell?" Ava turned around, one hand on her hip, catching her breath. "Karen knows Caius — that means something is seriously fishy."
Elaya stood mirror to her, arms crossed, same energy.
"I had been keeping an eye on Karen after I—" She stopped.
Ava's eyes sharpened immediately. "After?"
Elaya held her gaze for a second, then explained — the men in the car, the knife, Emris's name, all of it.
Ava stared at her.
"What are you saying, Elaya." Her voice dropped. "They were about to kill you and you were still out there roaming around." She pressed her fingers to her forehead and exhaled. "So Emris is alive?"
Elaya nodded.
"Karen is not trustworthy," Elaya said, her arms tightening across her chest.
Ava looked at her steadily. "Not even a little."