The house was quiet when Aaron came in, the kind of quiet that follows a storm. He locked the door behind him and stood there for a moment, letting the silence seep into his bones. The smell of Mina's lavender candle still lingered in the hallway.
He moved through the rooms without turning on a light. Every step felt heavier than the last, his shoulders aching with the weight of what he'd done. When he reached the bedroom, the moonlight had slipped past the curtains, painting the bed in soft silver.
Mina was asleep on her side, one arm tucked under the pillow, her hair spilling across the sheets. Ellie's faint breathing carried through the baby monitor on the nightstand. For the first time in hours, Aaron felt his chest loosen.
He sat on the edge of the bed and watched her. She looked so small, so still. The kind of peace he could never buy. He'd told himself he'd keep his distance when he came back—that she shouldn't see him like this, with blood still drying on his conscience—but his body moved before his mind could stop it.
He eased under the blanket, careful not to wake her. When his chest brushed her back, she stirred slightly, sighing in her sleep. Her warmth melted the chill that had settled in his skin. He slid an arm around her waist, pulling her gently against him until their breaths found the same rhythm.
For a long moment, he just lay there, forehead resting against her shoulder. The world outside could burn; right now, this small cocoon was all that mattered.
Mina murmured something half-dreamed, her fingers curling over his hand. He pressed a kiss into her hair, whispering, "It's over, princesa. You're safe. We're safe."
She didn't answer, but her breathing deepened, steady and slow. Aaron closed his eyes and let himself breathe with her. The violence still echoed in the back of his mind—the shot, the silence after—but Mina's warmth dulled it, turned the noise into something distant.
He held her a little tighter, not because he wanted to possess her, but because he needed proof that there was still softness left in the world, that he hadn't lost every piece of himself to revenge.
Outside, dawn began to rise, washing the sky pale. Inside, Aaron finally let sleep claim him, his face buried in her hair, the ghosts quiet for the first time in years.