KATHLEEN
The penthouse was too quiet at 3 AM.
Kathleen sat on the floor of Alina's bedroom, her back against the princess-pink headboard, listening to the girl's ragged breathing. The child hadn't spoken since the attack—just clutched Kathleen's sleeve with tiny, trembling fingers whenever she tried to leave.
Across the room, Carl leaned against the doorway, his arms crossed. Shadows hollowed his cheeks. He hadn't slept either.
Alina whimpered in her sleep, kicking at the blankets.
Kathleen smoothed her hair without thinking. "It's okay, солнышко." *Little sun.* The Russian endearment slipped out—one she hadn't used since the foster home where she'd met a scrappy boy who fought like a demon for kids who weren't his.
Carl's breath hitched. "You remember that?"
Kathleen kept her eyes on Alina. "I remember a lot of things now."
The way he'd shared his food when the staff withheld meals as punishment. How he'd taught her to pick locks after she got locked in a closet. The night he was dragged away in cuffs for defending her—
*"Don't follow me, malyshka. Keep your head down."*
She'd never seen him again. Until Veloria.
Alina's eyes flew open, glassy with night terrors. "*They're coming back!*"
Kathleen gathered her close. "No, baby. They're gone."
The girl buried her face in Kathleen's neck. "Promise?"
Over Alina's head, Kathleen locked eyes with Carl. Something passed between them—wordless, aching.
"Promise," they said in unison.
---
ALINA
Alina knew secrets.
Like how Uncle Carl cried when he thought she was asleep. How he kept Mommy's photo in a locked drawer. And how he looked at Miss Kathleen like she was the last light in the world.
She peeked from under her blankets as Miss Kathleen carried her to the window.
"See?" Miss Kathleen pointed at the stars. "That one's Polaris. It never moves. No matter how lost you are, it'll always guide you home."
Alina curled her fingers around Miss Kathleen's thumb. "Like you?"
Miss Kathleen went very still.
Uncle Carl made a rough sound in his throat.
Alina hugged her stuffed dragon tighter. Grown-ups were so *weird*. "Can Miss Kathleen stay? Please?"
The silence stretched like taffy.
Then Uncle Carl knelt beside them, his big hand covering both of theirs on the windowsill.
"Yeah," he said hoarsely. "She can stay."
---
AVA
Ava stared at her latest discovery, her coffee turning to sludge in her stomach.
The encrypted file was labeled **Project Phoenix**—Hansen's personal backup plan. Inside, a list of shell companies, offshore accounts, and…
**Asset Acquisition: SafeHaven IP (Contingency 12-B)**
But it was the last document that made her blood freeze:
**Termination Order: Kathleen Palmer**
**Approved By: Richard Kray**
**Status: Pending**
Dated *yesterday*.
Ava grabbed her phone and ran for the door.