Broken Trust

"I know she'll come back." Blair's voice, barely a whisper, echoed the words Victor had spoken the night before. But the reassurance that had calmed her then now felt hollow, a fragile hope crumbling under the weight of fear and unanswered questions.

She stood by the window, the city lights a blur through the rain-streaked glass, the world outside a reflection of the storm raging within her. It had been two days since the disastrous mission, two days of sleepless nights and a gnawing anxiety that twisted her insides, a constant, visceral reminder of Claudia's absence.

She'd replayed the events of that night a thousand times in her mind, searching for a clue, a missed detail, anything that might explain Claudia's disappearance. But the memories were fragmented, the details obscured by the adrenaline, the fear, the chaos that had consumed her.