Chapter 65
2249words
Zurich | Hotel Belvedere | Suite 1107
Evening (CET)
They had just come in from dinner—coats still half shrugged off, the taste of wine lingering on the edge of memory—when the alert chimed.
Eli’s laptop screen lit up on the desk across the room. He moved first, still loosening the collar of his shirt, and tapped the touchpad.
Kristina peeled off her coat, draping it over the chair. “Please tell me that’s not them.”
Eli didn’t answer.
She crossed the room slowly, catching the look on his face before she saw the screen. No subject line. No greeting. Just three encrypted attachments and a timestamp—19:03.
Her voice was low. “They had it the whole time,” she murmured. “Didn’t even ask for a meeting. Just dropped the files.”
Eli nodded once. “They just wanted to see if we’d fold.”
“They’re testing us,” Eli said. “Still trying to keep us off-balance. Make us play by their rules.”
She scanned the message again, then looked at the names on the attachments. “Route maps, clearance tags, corridor validation. This is everything they promised us for tomorrow.”
He leaned against the desk, his hands resting on the edge as he watched her read.
“We should call Lucian.”
But Eli shook his head. “Tomorrow. Let’s go over the documents first. I don’t want to wake him if half this data turns out worthless.”
She raised an eyebrow. “You think they’d risk that now?”
“I think they’re still gambling. And I want to know what cards they’re actually holding.”
Kristina sat down, already pulling the files into a local drive. The soft glow from the laptop illuminated the curve of her cheek, the still-pinned sweep of her hair. No exhaustion showed in her posture—only focus.
Eli watched her a moment longer. Then straightened, stepping away from the desk. “I’m heading out for a bit.”
She looked up. “Where?”
“Lobby,” he said easily. “Want to talk to someone from the concierge team—check something for tomorrow.”
She just nodded and turned back to the screen. “All right.”
The door clicked softly behind him.
The stakes had just shifted.
Zurich | Hotel Belvedere | Hallway
Outside, the hallway greeted him with silence.
But Eli didn’t head straight for the lobby.
He paused just outside the suite, listening a moment for the silence that followed. Then turned and walked toward the elevators instead, his steps quiet on the carpeted floor.
The hallway was dimly lit, the kind of hush that made time feel suspended.
He checked his watch.
When the elevator chimed, Eli looked up.
The doors slid open.
Lucian stepped out.
Dark coat. Gloves in one hand. The sharp quietness of someone who hadn't traveled for rest.
Eli didn’t move. Just met his eyes.
“Welcome to Zurich.”
Lucian gave a wordless nod, the weight of something about to shift in his eyes.
The doors closed behind them with a soft hush.
Lucian adjusted the strap of the bag on his shoulder. His voice was calm, low.
“How is everything?”
Eli gave a short nod. “Managed.”
A pause. Not tense. But not quite easy either.
Lucian glanced down the hallway, then back. “And Kristina?”
Eli’s jaw ticked once—barely. “She’s fine.”
Another beat passed. Neither looked away.
Lucian didn’t press further. He just gave a faint nod and said, “Good.”
It wasn’t sarcasm.
It wasn’t surrender.
It was just a word sitting on the edge of something unspoken.
Eli shifted slightly. “You want to go in?”
Lucian looked toward the suite door.
Then back at Eli. “Not yet.”
Lucian stayed where he was. Eli didn’t press.
Lucian looked over. “She doesn’t know I’m here?”
“No.” Eli’s voice stayed neutral. “Not yet.”
Lucian didn’t react. Just exhaled once, slow.
Then, carefully:
“Should she?”
Eli turned slightly, finally meeting his eyes.
There was no hostility. Just something quieter. Tighter. Like they both understood the answer, even if they weren’t saying it.
“I don’t know,” Eli said. “You tell me.”
Lucian’s jaw shifted slightly, but the rest of him didn’t move.
“I didn’t come to cause trouble.”
Eli gave a faint nod. “Doesn’t mean you won’t.”
They stood there for a beat longer—two men carrying too much silence between them. Two sides of the same fault line.
Lucian glanced toward the door. Then back to Eli.
“I’ll wait. You decide how this plays out.”
And for a brief second, Eli almost respected him for it.
Eli nodded slightly toward the suite. “She misses you so much. I don’t think you should let her wait much longer.”
Lucian gave a small nod, the appreciation clear in his eyes.
Eli turned, about to step back toward the door—
But Lucian stopped him. Quietly. Gently.
“Did something… happen…?”
He didn’t finish the sentence.
But Eli understood.
His gaze dropped. Embarrassed. Afraid. Guilty.
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I… I couldn’t help it.”
Lucian didn’t get upset.
Strangely, neither of them broke the quiet. The silence said more than words.
“Don’t apologize.”
Eli looked up.
They stared at each other for a long, weighted moment. Something unspoken passed between them.
Then Eli cleared his throat. “Let’s go, before Kristina senses something is weird. I’ll go in first.”
Lucian just nodded.
And together, they walked back to the suite.
Eli opened the door and stepped inside—but didn’t close it.
Kristina was still seated near the table, the light casting soft gold over the open documents. She stayed focused on the page, flipping it once, unaware of his stillness behind her.
“You know,” she said, eyes still scanning the lines, “we really should call Lucian about this. I mean, I understand you know what to do, but…”
Now she looked up. “I don’t like what I’m seeing here.”
Kristina’s brows knit together. She stood slowly, watching him.
“Eli… is something wrong?”
He didn’t speak.
Concern bloomed in her expression as she walked to him, gentle, close.
“Hey,” she said softly, placing her hand on his arm. “Talk to me. Is something wrong?”
Eli didn’t meet her eyes.
Instead, he turned slightly toward the open door—
And as if on cue, Lucian stepped inside.
Kristina’s eyes widened.
“Lucian,” she breathed—half disbelief, half joy.
The excitement hit her all at once. Before either of them could say anything else, she closed the distance in two quick strides and threw herself into his arms.
Lucian caught her with ease, arms locking around her instinctively as she wrapped her legs around his waist.
He held her close. Firm. Safe.
Kristina buried her face into his shoulder, laughing through the breath she didn’t realize she was holding.
“You’re here,” she whispered.
Lucian set his bag down quietly near the door and sank into the armchair without protest, leaning back as Kristina sat on him, her hands resting lightly on his shoulders.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” she said softly.
He looked at her, something unreadable passing through his expression. “I couldn’t stay away.”
She smiled—soft and shaken—and only then did she glance over her shoulder.
Eli was still standing by the table.
Her eyes lingered on him. Something in his face made her chest tighten, and before she could stop herself, she reached out a hand.
“Come here.”
Eli hesitated.
Then crossed the room in silence.
She kept hold of Lucian’s hand as she reached for Eli’s with her other, her gaze lowering like she was trying to understand what it meant to hold both.
Lucian said nothing. Neither did Eli.
The silence swelled—full, complicated, real.
Then Lucian cleared his throat, sitting up straighter. “I saw part of the file. They sent a duplicate to the private inbox.”
Eli frowned. “You read it already?”
Lucian nodded. “Some of it. Enough.”
His voice had steadied, but the lines under his eyes gave him away.
Kristina shifted. “Then you also saw the inconsistencies.”
“I did,” he said. “And I know what they’re doing.”
But before the moment could harden into strategy, Kristina shook her head. “Not tonight. Not yet.”
Eli backed her up. “You need sleep. We’re not doing this half-alert.”
Lucian’s gaze moved between them again.
This time, he didn’t argue.
“All right,” he said. “Tomorrow.”
Kristina finally let go of their hands and stood, brushing her palms together like she was grounding herself again.
“We’ll end it,” she said quietly. “Tomorrow.”
Lucian gave a small nod.
And for a rare moment, all three of them stood in the same room, bound by something they hadn’t yet named—and already couldn’t undo.
Kristina moved quickly to take one of Lucian’s bags. “Let me help you with that.”
Eli stepped in too, taking the other. “How many hours was your flight?”
“Too many,” Lucian said. “But I wasn’t alone. Sebastian, Ash, and Vex are down the hall.”
Kristina glanced up. “They came with you?”
Lucian nodded. “Yeah, they’re in three separate rooms.”
Eli let out a dry chuckle. “You mean the rooms you booked last minute.”
Lucian didn’t answer, but the corner of his mouth curved—just briefly—before he looked away to hide it.
Kristina laughed softly. “Okay, so that means you’re sleeping here. With us.”
She was already heading to the bathroom.
Which left the two of them—Lucian and Eli—alone in the suite. For a long second, neither spoke.
Then Lucian broke the silence. “For all the years we worked together, I never thought a time like this would come—that we’d be sleeping in the same room.”
Eli smirked, walking toward the bed. “Yeah, well… it’s your doing. So I guess there’s a first time for everything.”
After Kristina stepped out in her robe, Lucian went in next—leaving her and Eli alone for a moment.
Kristina glanced at him as he moved around the bed. “Are you okay… with him being here?”
Eli looked up, met her eyes. “Yeah. Of course.”
“You sure?”
He gave a slight smile. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to start a pillow fight or anything.”
Kristina laughed softly, easing the tension. She moved to help him straighten the bed. He reached over to the phone and called the front desk.
“Hi, could we get an extra set of pillows sent to Suite 1107?” A short pause. “Thank you.”
By the time he hung up, the bathroom door opened again.
Lucian stepped out, towel in one hand, the ends of his hair still damp. Eli offered a small nod and brushed past him on his way in.
Now Kristina and Lucian were alone.
He walked toward her, eyes soft, and without a word pulled her gently into a kiss. Slow. Familiar. Steady.
When they parted, she touched his cheek. “I still can’t believe you’re really here.”
“I told you I’d come,” he said quietly. “And I missed you.”
She leaned into him a little more, then glanced over her shoulder toward the bathroom. “Is this okay? Us all here like this?”
Lucian didn’t hesitate. “Eli’s the one who encouraged me to come. He said you needed this. That we needed this.”
She blinked. That wasn’t what she expected to hear.
Kristina stared at him, the truth settling in her chest.
She nodded once. “Okay.”
And for a moment longer, she just stayed in his arms.
The lights were dimmed now, the suite hushed, their things tucked neatly out of sight. They were all changed and ready for bed when Kristina looked at the mattress with a small laugh.
“You know, I’ve always wondered why the bed was so big. What size is this?”
“Alaskan King. I requested the biggest suite they had,” Lucian replied casually.
Eli gave him a look. “You really prepared a lot for this, huh.”
Lucian just shrugged with a quiet smile. “Well, you know me.”
Kristina pointed like she was directing traffic. “Okay, so obviously, you can take your sides—Lucian, you on the left. Eli, on the right.”
Then she turned, jumped right onto the bed, arms spread like a starfish, giggling slightly as she landed. Eli and Lucian exchanged a quick look—still a little awkward—before they followed, each taking their sides of the bed.
It wasn’t long before Eli and Lucian both noticed it.
Kristina’s energy was... different. Light. Unusually bright.
Lucian turned his head slightly on the pillow. “You look so bubbly. First time I’ve seen you like this.”
“I second that,” Eli added from the other side.
Kristina blinked at the ceiling, then turned her head to glance between the two of them. “Yeah, I don’t know. I’m just really happy, I guess. Maybe because you’re both here with me… and now…”
She trailed off.
And in the quiet that followed, Eli and Lucian looked at each other across the space between them—acknowledging what wasn’t said, but deeply felt.
Kristina shifted, her smile softening as she reached out—one hand finding Lucian’s, the other Eli’s.
“Thank you for being here with me,” she said quietly. “You don’t know how much this means to me.”
Neither of them spoke. But neither let go.
She sat up slightly between them, the blanket rustling as she moved. She leaned toward Lucian first, brushing a kiss to his lips. It wasn’t just a soft kiss—it lingered. Slow. Sure. Like a whisper that carried weight.
Then she turned toward Eli.
And kissed him just the same.
It wasn’t rushed. Or hesitant. It was real. Certain. Charged with everything they all knew but hadn’t said aloud.
She settled back between them, her hands still in theirs.
Silence fell—but this time, it wasn’t awkward.
It was full.
Sometimes, the most honest place is the space in between.
—To be continued.
