Chapter 4 — The Weight of the Past

Claire

The dim light of Claire’s office lamp cast long, angular shadows across the polished surface of her desk. The muted hum of the city beyond the skyscraper's window was a faint and indifferent backdrop to the sharp scratching of her fountain pen against a legal brief. It was well past midnight, and the office, sterile and silent, felt like a cage. She should have gone home hours ago, but the weight of unfinished work—and the unrelenting churn of self-doubt—anchored her to her chair.