Narrator’s Point of View

The mansion carried a stillness that felt heavier than silence.

After the smoke and screams of Batangas, the quiet was almost unbearable. Every tick of the clock echoed through the grand hall like a reminder—they’d won a battle, but the war was far from over.

Manolo stood by the window, the fading light casting his shadow long across the marble floor. His hands were clasped behind his back, his jaw set tight as his eyes traced the distant ...