Chapter 164

Nikolai. It was just him and me for a while—Aurelio and I. Sitting on the stone steps of the estate as the sky turned from bruised peach to deeper lavender, as though the world was holding its breath before nightfall. The estate, for once, was quiet. No voices, no clatter. Just the occasional chirp of birds and the way Aurelio would tap his foot—restless but grounded, like some part of him still knew this was home, even if he didn’t remember why. He hadn’t said much. Didn’t need to. We weren’t good at talking, he and I—not in the normal way. We were better in movement, in action, in that sharp-edged language that required fists or guns or pacing tension. But this? Sitting still beside him, sipping whatever herbal nonsense Arsen had convinced me to try? This was... grounding. Healing didn’t always look like breakthroughs. Sometimes it was just a man breathing easier beside someone who knew not to ask questions. “You used to complain about the birds here,” I said eventually, half-amused.