Night had already swallowed the sky by the time Aec finally dragged himself back home.
He didn't drive to the office.
He couldn't.
His chest was too tight, his mind too unstable. And right now, the one place he needed wasn't his desk, it was his house. Somewhere he could breathe.
But the moment he turned into his street, his heart dropped.
A black car sat parked right outside his gate.
Not just any black car.
Victor Langley's.
Aec's jaw clenched.
Of course…
Of course his father would show up tonight… everything inside Aec already felt shattered.
Aec inhaled deeply, shoved down the ache in his ribcage, and walked inside.
The moment he stepped in, the atmosphere changed.
Cold.
Sharp.
Tense.
Victor sat on the sofa, legs crossed, fingers drumming lazily against the armrest. Diana stood beside him, holding a porcelain teacup but the cold aura around her was impossible to miss.
She didn't smile.
She didn't greet.
