The days after the attack felt… different.
Not safer. Not calmer.
Just different.
Asli began noticing things she hadn't before. The way Ferhat moved through the house—quiet, controlled, always alert. The way people lowered their voices when he entered a room. The way silence followed him like a shadow.
He wasn't just feared.
He was obeyed.
From a distance, she watched him in the study one afternoon, speaking on the phone in a low, firm voice. She couldn't hear the words, but she could feel the weight behind them.
Power.
Danger.
Loneliness.
That last one surprised her.
Because beneath everything…
He always seemed alone.
And for reasons she didn't understand—
She started paying attention.