Chapter 10: The Price of Freedom
That night, he did not sleep. He sat by the window, watching the darkness, waiting.
Elara stirred beside him. "What's wrong?"
"They found me."
She was silent for a long time. Then, softly, she said, "You knew they would."
Pedro clenched his fists. "I won't let them take this life from me."
Elara's gaze was steady. "Then don't."
He turned to her, seeing not fear in her eyes, but something fiercer.
"You told me once that I could choose something else," he murmured.
She nodded. "And you still can. But running won't work. If you want to be free, you have to end this."
Pedro exhaled. He had spent so long trying to outrun his past.
Perhaps it was time to face it.