Rafael POV

Silence... They say silence is golden.

But what they don't tell you... is that silence is also deadly.

It's the weapon of those who have seen too much, felt too deep, and learned that words-words often fall on deaf ears.

Aristotle... or maybe it was some other wise man-he wasn't joking when he warned: "Never mistake a person's silence for ignorance, their calmness for acceptance, or their kindness for weakness."

Because the quiet ones?

They're the ones who watched. Waited. Endured.

Just like I have, waiting to roll the game up my sleeve and-like a predator waiting for its prey-attack.

Little by little, I was going to break...