The car rumbled to a stop at the curb, the city still humming around them. After hours of silence and too many detours, the sudden stillness felt jarring.

Alessandro cut the engine. For a long beat, he didn’t move, his hand still resting on the wheel, his gaze fixed on Sophia in the back seat.

Her small chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm, untouched by the chaos she’d been carried through.

Eva reached for the door handle. He moved first.

“Let me help you,” he said softly, ...