The rain had been falling for hours by the time Elias reached the small apartment above the café. The streets were slick with water, the air thick with dampness. It was a quiet night, just like any other. No one paid him any mind as he made his way up the creaky stairs, past the flickering light that signaled his apartment door.
But this night was different. He could feel it.
Inside, he tossed his coat onto the back of a chair and sat down at the small table by the window, which had a perfect view of the city skyline. Elias stared out into the rain, thinking back to the dinner. The Linwoods. His wife. The way they looked at him. The way they always thought he was just passing through, a temporary fixture in a life they believed was beyond him.
He'd played the part well enough—until tonight.
The knock came when he least expected it. Three sharp raps against the door. Elias hesitated, his heart jumping in his chest. No one came here unless they knew him. Unless they knew something he didn't.
He stood and opened the door, finding an old man standing in the threshold. His clothes were simple—worn boots, a heavy coat, and a faded cap. But his eyes—his eyes were the most striking thing about him. They were deep, filled with years of stories, of memories that hadn't yet been spoken.
The man didn't waste time with pleasantries.
"You're Elias Crane?" His voice was low, gravelly, like it had been worn down by years of silence.
Elias studied him. "Who wants to know?"
The man didn't flinch. He stepped forward, pulling a small bundle from beneath his coat. "I was a servant of your family—long ago. I knew your bloodline. Knew the Cranes before they were erased."
Elias's pulse quickened. Something ancient stirred inside him. He could feel it—a deep connection to the words this man spoke. A family lost, buried beneath time, forgotten by those who thought themselves above it.
"My name is Marcus," the man continued, his eyes never leaving Elias's. "And I'm here to remind you that you haven't been forgotten."
Elias said nothing at first. He just stood there, trying to process the words. He'd always known there was something more to his past than he'd been told. But hearing it aloud made it real. The name. The legacy.
He stepped aside, allowing Marcus to enter. They sat at the table, the weight of unspoken history between them.
"What do you want from me?" Elias asked, his voice steady but laced with a hint of confusion.
Marcus laid the bundle on the table and slowly unwrapped it. Inside, there was a pendant—an old, ornate piece of jewelry, its design unmistakable. A crescent moon, wrapped in flames. The same symbol from the envelope. From his dreams. The same symbol that had appeared when he had first touched the family relics.
"This belonged to your grandfather," Marcus said. "Harold Linwood. He knew more than anyone. More than you may realize."
Elias took the pendant, feeling its weight in his hand. "Why didn't he tell me?"
"He couldn't. It was never meant to be spoken of. But Harold had his reasons. And now, you're the last one who can carry this legacy forward."
Elias closed his hand around the pendant. He could feel the power in it, the pull of something ancient stirring in his blood.
"What am I supposed to do with this?" Elias asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
Marcus leaned in, his gaze sharp. "You have two choices. The world is changing. The Cranes were meant to protect what's hidden, what others would destroy. But now, there are forces who want to control it. The power you carry in your veins is the only thing standing between them and what they desire."
Elias sat back, the weight of the words settling over him like a storm. He had always known he was different, but this… this was something else entirely. Something bigger than him. Bigger than anything he had imagined.
"You've been marked," Marcus continued. "And now you must decide: will you accept what you are? Will you fight for the family that was lost, or let it die with you?"
Elias looked down at the pendant in his hand, feeling the pulse of something ancient, something long dormant, flicker to life inside him.
It wasn't just about the Linwoods. Or Sera. Or even the life he had tried to build.
It was about something much, much larger.
Something only he could protect.