Theo brought Iris back to his villa for some downtime. During her stay, both Judy and Jim wanted to visit, but Iris wasn't up for it, she declined it firmly.
"I don't want to see anyone," she stared out the window, almost whispering to Theo about her thoughts. She barely ate, managing just one meal a day, and hardly spoke. When Theo tried to engage her in conversation, she'd just give noncommittal nods or Huns.
In this home shrouded in sorrow, silence had become the primary means of communication. Every day, Theo tried to break through the ice, but each attempt seemed to merely chip at an impenetrable surface, making no real progress. Iris remained silent. The sparkle that once lit up her eyes was gone, and her replies were brief and distant, as if her heart had migrated to another realm, indifferent to the happenings of this world.
However, the world's clamor didn't pause for their grief.
