Elara did not expect the man to introduce himself.
Most dangerous men didn't begin with honesty. They tested the space first, measured reactions, pushed until they found an opening. Kael had relied on force. Rowan had relied on restraint. Neither of them had revealed themselves so directly at the beginning.
This man did.
He stepped closer with calm, deliberate control, as if the outcome of this encounter was already something he had considered and accepted. His gaze met hers without hesitation, steady and composed in a way that felt almost intentional.
"My name is Adrian Vale," he said.
His voice carried no urgency, no need to impress. He spoke as if stating a simple fact, something that existed independently of whether she cared to acknowledge it.
That, more than anything, unsettled her.
