Chapter 222

As soon as she noticed his presence, she stood up fully, smoothing the folds of her kameez with a small, almost nervous gesture that reminded him of how things used to be between them before everything fractured.

“Good morning,” she greeted quietly, her voice carrying a careful politeness that felt practiced yet sincere. The politeness was a mask, and he could see the seams where it did not quite fit.

He nodded in acknowledgement, the motion brief and guarded, then crossed the room with measured steps. “Sit,” he said, his tone even but firm, and she occupied her seat again on the leather armchair while Moosa settled into the one near her, close enough to speak without raising his voice yet far enough to keep the invisible distance he still needed.

“I’ll be leaving soon,” the first thing Farah told him was that, the words coming out straightforward, as though she had rehearsed them on the way here. The rehearsal had not made them any easier to say. Moosa just nodded