Chapter 6 Conversation In Silence

The rain hadn’t let up by evening. It painted the windows in soft, streaking lines and dulled the city noise to a quiet hum. Inside the Blackwood Foundation, the library was nearly empty—just the scent of old paper, the ticking of the antique wall clock, and the distant groan of settling wood. Isabella stayed later than usual, though no one had asked her to. There was a calmness in the solitude, and maybe—just maybe—a flicker of hope that she might see him again.