Beneath the Stillness

Previously

…Leo frowned. His grandmother, the woman he’d only known as a distant, formidable presence, seemed to have lived a life far removed from the quiet existence he’d imagined. He flipped through more pages, his skepticism a familiar shield against anything that smacked of melodrama. He’d built his career on uncovering hard truths, on dissecting lies and exposing hypocrisy. This felt… different. Like a story spun from moonlight and shadow. “The Serpent’s Eye watches,” another passage stated, the ink darker, more urgent. “Its gaze is long, its reach is deep. They guard the path, not for preservation, but for possession. The world must not know the true weight of what lies hidden.” Leo’s