13 The Return

Ronan

Returning to my father's house after nearly two years filled me with a deep sense of nostalgia and a mix of other emotions I couldn't quite name. The memories came rushing back, each corner of the house whispering tales of my past.

I had left the country two months after that terrible incident, never intending to look back. But my father, ever the determined figure, found a way to bring me back to Jorvik headquarters. I knew my mother had a hand in this, too; it was just like her to meddle when I refused to speak to them.

My father's attempts to reach out to me over the past year had been relentless. Each call and message went unanswered. I couldn't bear to talk about Leah or the Semenovs. I had tried so hard to bury the past and move on, leaving it all behind me.

During my time in Kivastan, I met a young woman in the medical department. She was kind and attentive, tending to my gunshot wound with such care that I couldn't help but be drawn to her. The war raged on around us,