The study was drowned in a suffocating silence.
The only sound fragmenting the dark was the faint, rhythmic crackle of burning tobacco.
Olivia stirred, her body stiff with exhaustion. A dull, throbbing ache radiated down her neck from hours slumped over the hard oak desk, her vision swimming in blurred shadows. A thin ribbon of gray smoke drifted lazily through the gloom, carrying a rich, familiar scent she knew better than her own breath.
Slowly, she forced her head up.
A few paces away, a tall silhouette stood leaning casually against the closed doorframe. A heavy dark cloak concealed half his face beneath its deep hood, while a lit cigarette rested between his pale fingers.
"...Mathias?"
The name left her lips in a ragged, raspy whisper before her mind could fully awaken.
Then, reality struck like a sudden, brutal blow.
Her pupils dilated.
She pushed herself upright so violently that several loose documents slid off the polished wood, scattering across the floor.
