The lecture hall emptied slowly, students drifting out in pairs and clusters. Lila stayed behind, pretending to organize her notes while Professor Elena packed her briefcase. The older woman glanced up, smiling. "My brother will be here tomorrow to measure the east wing for the new library extension. You’ll probably see him around."

Lila nodded, heart already beating faster. She had seen him once, last semester, when he picked Elena up after a department meeting—tall, quiet, maybe forty, with the kind of stillness that made people look twice. She had not expected to meet him again.