The Scent of Secrets
LAURA’S POV
The small recorder sat in my palm like a confession.
I stared at it, stunned into silence. A black device—neatly stitched into Elina’s favorite stuffed bear—small enough to be missed, dangerous enough to change everything.
Someone had been listening, and spying on us.
With trembling hands, I opened the window of my study and, without a second thought, I crushed the recorder under my heel and tossed its broken pieces into the darkness beyond the hedges. It landed with on the soft grass outside, but the weight of it lingered in my chest.
I stood by the window, letting the cool breeze brush over my skin. But the quiet didn’t last.
“Elina still asleep?”
I turned sharply. Elijah stood by the door, arms crossed. His eyes flicked to the open window, then
