Orchid's house, nestled amidst a grove of whispering pines, offered a fragile sanctuary. The flickering lamps cast warm shadows on the rough-hewn walls, a stark contrast to the turmoil that echoed within the room. Falcon, still reeling from the revelation about Lee, hovered awkwardly beside Aurelia, her reassuring hand on his arm.
Cyan, his head swathed in bandages, sat stiffly across from them, the echoes of Viper's threats and the serpent's looming presence hanging heavy in the air. Orchid, her face grim, paced before them, her gaze sharp as a hawk's.
"Lee… he told me," she spat, her voice laced with disgust. "He said he would… settle the score with you both, make you pay for…" her voice choked, and she swallowed hard. "He was consumed by the serpent's whispers, driven mad by a thirst for vengeance."
