Kaiden, seated on the sofa, held a cigarette loosely between his fingers. His adeptness at concealing his feelings left Ellie uncertain about his state of mind. Yet, the cluster of cigarette butts in the ashtray on the tea table hinted at a restless night.

“Ahem!” The air, heavy with the smell of smoke, triggered a fit of coughing from Ellie.

Reacting almost reflexively, Kaiden extinguished his cigarette at the sound of her discomfort.

“Did you sleep well?” he inquired, clearly surprised to see her up before nine.

“Kaiden, are you feeling okay? Is Ms. Thorpe’s matter bothering you?” Ellie approached, taking a seat beside him, her concern palpable.

“Everything’s fine,” Kaiden replied, trying to sound nonchalant as he inquired,

“Why were you back late last night?”

“Oh, I picked up some work in the afternoon and ended up having dinner with a friend,” Ellie explained, a twinge of guilt creeping into her voice as she mentioned the word ‘friend.’

She knew she was skirting around the truth; Kaiden had expressed his concerns about Kristopher, yet she chose to keep her interaction with him under wraps.

Kaiden, masking his emotions, simply nodded. “Go freshen up. I’ll get breakfast ordered for us,” he suggested, his demeanor unchanged.

“Okay,” Ellie responded, turning towards the bathroom, leaving Kaiden in contemplation. He recalled the details Levy shared about Kristopher the previous night.

Kristopher, a photographer, was renowned for his award-winning series capturing the silhouette of a girl as she grew from childhood into her teenage years. These images, void of any discernible facial features, bore a striking resemblance to the anonymous works displayed on the island, all of which depicted Ellie.

In the bathroom, Ellie was midway through brushing her teeth when her phone rang.

It was Baylee, her tone laced with urgency. “El, have you seen the news?” she asked.

Ellie rinsed her mouth quickly, replying, “Not yet. I just woke up.”

“It’s about Kaiden,” Baylee revealed, urging Ellie to swiftly look up the day’s headlines.

Ellie was met with a startling update: “GT Group’s CEO acquitted on charges of brother’s death, citing mental health diagnosis.”

The news broke in the wee hours, and by the time the stock market opened at 9:00 AM, shares of both GT Group and Thorpe Group were in free fall.

The previous night, Thorpe Group’s shareholders had called for an urgent meeting, firmly opposing Kaiden’s leadership. Now, both corporations found themselves besieged by the media. In the face of such public scrutiny, no amount of damage control seemed feasible.

With a complexion drained of color, Ellie rushed back to the living room, visibly shaken.

“What’s wrong?” Kaiden, noting her distress and the worry etched in her red-rimmed eyes, looked at her with concern.

“You… Kaiden, I’m sorry. I had no idea there was such an uproar about you and your brother last night. I…” Ellie’s voice trailed off, her mind racing.

.

.

.