Griffin:I'm fine. Stay there.
Rune:The marks on the stage floor
He'd already done the math, and he knew.
Griffin:Later. We'll talk later.
I stared at the words. They were inadequate and insufficient.
Griffin:I promise.
I pocketed my phone and looked up at the damaged truss one more time. Then, I stared at the silver mark on the stage floor where Rune would have been standing.
Where he would have died.
My hands finally started shaking. I curled them into fists and walked toward the exit, past the crew still processing what had happened.
Later, I'd told Rune.
If later happened.
I'd make sure it did.
Chapter fourteen
Rune - LA - May 12
The rest of the evening before passed in fragments. The van ride back to the hotel. Kang giving instructions I didn't fully hear. Griffin's hand steadying me as I stepped out onto the pavement.
My room door closing. The lock engaging.
I'd stared at the ceiling for hours, seeing the silver mark on the stage floor where I should have been standing.
Where I would have died.
I woke to gray morning light, knowing something was wrong before I remembered what.
My phone showed thirty-seven unread messages. The first was from staff.
Soyeon:Both crew members stable. Updates to follow.
Both. The word made it real.
I scrolled through production updates, management notes, and careful language aboutincident containedandminimal disruption to schedule.
Lee Chang-min, thirty-four. Park Junho, twenty-seven. I said their names out loud.
I tried to eat the room-service breakfast. Managed two bites of toast. A shower helped briefly: hot water and steam. I stood under the spray, hands pressed against the tile, watching water circle the drain.
As I emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around my waist, my phone buzzed.
Griffin:How are you?
Rune:Fine.
Griffin:Try again.
I sat on the edge of the bed, water dripping from my hair onto my shoulders.
