Villain Ch 1640. Haunted Real Estate Ad?
The car slowed as the city melted into curated nature—gravel trails and wide-open air, the scent of fresh earth mixing with floral perfumes and caffeine from the crew's early-morning thermoses.
They passed a long stone wall covered in ivy and then slipped into a secluded lot tucked behind a faux-ruined gate. It looked like something out of a magazine shoot for old money nostalgia—half overgrown, half meticulously arranged to look overgrown.
Kai cleared his throat from the driver's seat. "We've arrived, sir."
Allen didn't answer at first. His eyes had already picked out the ones who didn't belong.
Too-clean sneakers. Phones angled too carefully. Someone pretending to sip coffee, but the cup was empty. A woman pretending to laugh at nothing, eyes darting toward the cars.
Reporters.
Journalists pretending to be passersby.
They were everywhere.
