The next day, Ezra had barely woken up. The pain in his chest had not gone away.  

All night he had thought about his sister's death, his mother's words, and also this mysterious person who had come to their house. Ezra had the feeling that it was a huge puzzle that he hadn't yet managed to solve. There were definitely parts missing and Ezra was determined to find out more

He was late so he hurried to grab an apple before leaving, when he came face to face with a small card marked with a sire's seal and with an address written in black ink. It had been left by the mysterious person yesterday. Ezra hesitated a moment before slipping the card into his pocket. 

He didn't want to go to school, but it was the last few days so Elena had asked him to make one last effort. 

So when he walked through the school gates, he was obviously late. The professor looked at him sternly as he settled down in the back of the class, near the window. 

– Ezra, instead, come and sit here, in front of my desk. If you prefer, we can postpone the start of classes by ten minutes, that will allow you to sleep a little more. 

The whole class started laughing, Ezra blushed and came to sit in the front row.  On the way he met Thea's gaze who was watching him with this ambiguous little smile. During class, Ezra kept thinking about his sister. He felt something weird. A feeling that Maya was somewhere, still there.  

On the one hand, he just couldn't accept that his sister was no longer there, but upon deeper reflection, what his mother had told him about his sister and the conversation he had overheard with this mysterious stranger did not align. 

Ezra fixated on one sentence in particular: “I gave you the man of my life and my daughter.” Could it mean that this woman was responsible for their deaths? 

His mother had told him from an early age that his father passed away, in a plane crash, shortly after Lily was born. But she had always been evasive about the details, so Ezra had stopped asking his mother questions. He realized that it pained her, and he never got a clear answer anyway. But now, things were different: if he could find this woman, he might get answers to the questions that had been unanswered for years.

Ezra had given it a lot of thought; he didn't know this woman, but he had what appeared to be her address and was determined to visit her. The bell signaling the end of class jolted him from his thoughts. As Ezra packed his notebooks and supplies into his bag, the other students hurried to the cafeteria to secure the best seats. He didn’t mind; he was content to eat alone with a book. That was all he needed.

 During lunchtime, Ezra was more reserved: Barton, notably, never ate at school this year. Contrary to what some might assume, Barton came from a wealthy family. Hence, every lunchtime, a driver picked him up and brought him back before classes resumed. Ezra flinched at the sight of the long cafeteria line when he heard a voice behind him,

– Ez-Ezra?

He turned around: it was Sullivan Lyles, the boy he had stood up for against Barton the previous night.

Sullivan averted his gaze, looking embarrassed.

 – I… I'm sorry about yesterday…

Ezra just shrugged and turned away. After a long wait, Ezra finally reached the food selection. Today, nothing appealed to him, so he settled for rice and yogurt. Sullivan, who had been moving through the line at the same pace, tried again:

– Uh, Ezra, if you want, we can eat together.

– No, that's fine, he replied dryly. 

– Most... 

– Look, you didn't even defend me by telling Vittel the truth!  Thanks ! I should have left you to fend for yourself. So no, I'm not apologizing, and I don't want to have lunch with you. 

Ezra moved away from him and walked over to an empty table. Unfortunately, there was only one place left in the middle of the din. In front of him, three girls giggled watching him. Among them, Thea pretended not to look at him while whispering words in the ear of her two friends. 

– Hey, stop watching the girls! someone next to him shouted. 

Ezra glanced at him and sighed; it was clearly someone from Barton's group. Ezra ignored it and continued reading his book. When he looked up, Thea was staring at him with her large, golden eyes framed by long lashes. She quickly looked away, as if she was suddenly very shy.  This time, Ezra was embarrassed and couldn't help but blush.

Although he was cautious about anything related to Barton, he wasn't completely indifferent, even though he wasn’t particularly interested in girls at that time.  He wondered if Thea was just trying to get people to like her and find her pretty. The problem was that it worked: everyone was looking for his company, even the other girls and… of course that show-off Barton. Rumors were circulating that they were already a couple. Basically, he had nothing to do with this girl, any more than the others. All he wanted was to get back to class quickly and then go to that address on the card, from that unknown woman.

Classes passed excruciatingly slowly, the clock's hands seeming to mock Ezra with their sluggish pace. Finally, when the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day, a wave of relief washed over him. The children around him got up in a hurry, a cacophony of chairs scraping and bags zipping filling the air. Ezra stood up swiftly, his heart pounding with anticipation, not sparing a glance for his teacher. He rushed to the door, mumbling a vague, barely audible greeting, and hurried off down the corridor. He had something important to do, something potentially life-changing.

He was already outside, the cool afternoon air brushing against his face, when he heard Barton's familiar, taunting voice calling out to him from behind.

– Why are you in such a hurry, Ezra? What could someone like you possibly have that's so important?

One of his cronies chimed in, a sneer in his voice,

– He's scared of you, Barton.

The group erupted in mocking laughter, their jeers echoing in the schoolyard. Ezra took a deep breath, trying to maintain his composure. He didn't have time for this. But Barton, relentless as ever, quickened his pace and joined Ezra, walking alongside him with a malicious grin.

– Lost your voice, Ezra? Or just too afraid to use it?

Ezra clenched his fists, the knuckles turning white, and managed not to answer. His mind was racing, weighing the risk of confrontation against the urgency of his mission.

– Okay, Barton continued, undeterred by Ezra's silence. Typical behavior for a coward without a father. Can't even stand up for himself, can you?

Ezra clenched his teeth so hard he thought they were going to snap. Then, in a sudden burst of adrenaline, he quickly crossed the road, darting between cars, putting as much distance between himself and Barton as possible. From the other side, he glared at Barton with a mix of anger and defiance.

– We'll see once we catch him, Barton chuckled to his group, but Ezra was already moving away, his heart racing.

He walked away at full speed, his mind a whirlwind of thoughts. He had to hurry; if he was too late, his mother would become suspicious, and the last thing he needed was more questions he couldn’t answer. He turned down a side street, hoping to lose Barton and his group in the maze of alleys. 

He walked up a wide alley until he came to an isolated part of town. He was supposed to be familiar with everything in his birth town. However, that doesn't seem to be the case, at least not this place. In fact, this neighborhood was built when more and more wealthy owners wanted to have large lots, out of sight. Perhaps that is why most of the buildings, lining both sides of the street, appeared very luxurious. 

Ezra had never imagined finding such an elegant and tranquil neighborhood in Mayville, known more for its bustling middle-class areas. After wandering around this neighborhood for a long time, Ezra finally found what he was looking for: At the corner of a quiet, secluded path stood an old house with a pointed roof, hidden from view. Overrun with brambles, shrubs, tall grass, and unruly ivy creeping up its walls, it seemed designed to deter the curious. Ezra thought it unlikely that many from the neighborhood would linger in front of this house, a thought that sent a slight shiver down his spine.

The closed shutters, crafted from dark gray-painted wood and now dilapidated, along with the blackened roughcast and tiles barely clinging together, perhaps by mere chance, gave the house a distinct appearance during the day. 

Ezra found it hard to believe that between two well-kept luxury properties, there was an abandoned house, placed like a tombstone in a cemetery. One might have thought the house dead, if not for the invasive vegetation engulfing its façade, lending it a semblance of life. 

The sight of this abandoned house was frightening, but not for Ezra. Indeed, he felt drawn to it, as if under a spell. 

He looked for a long time at these closed shutters, there was no doubt that the house was empty, he could infiltrate it without any risk. He gripped the handle of the large gate which, despite its decrepit appearance, was locked and surprisingly sturdy.  Ezra easily scaled the gate and safely landed on the other side, in the house's garden. 

He made his way with difficulty from the gate to the front door of the house, as the flagstones had disappeared under the nettles and the weeds. But after some effort, grazes by brambles and often painful stings, he finally arrived in front of the main entrance of the house. Not a sound. 

Ezra pulled the handle on the wooden door, which opened without much resistance and stepped inside. It was very dark there, but to his amazement there was no smell of mold or dust. He walked along the long corridor to arrive in what could be the living room, the room was cold, no soul, no electricity. Ezra had difficulty seeing in this darkness, so he walked to the window lined with velvet curtains surrounded by a halo of light outside. He opened it not without difficulty as well as the old shutters. The sun suddenly entered the rooms flooding the place with its warm color.

Ezra was amazed to see that the room was actually well kept, the gray walls were covered with portrait paintings, a beautiful marble table was surrounded by luxurious chairs on a velvet carpet. One found a little everywhere menus of heterogeneous objects, sculptures in jade, marbled clock and gold. Suddenly, Ezra heard a throat being cleared, the sound echoing through the room, causing him to spin around abruptly. 

Ezra looked up at a tall man standing close to him. So fascinated by the place, he hadn't noticed his motionless presence.The man was skinny, with a very sunken, waxy yellow face and a crown of gray-brown hair. Ezra wouldn't know how old he was, but he was much older than he had seen.

The man continued to watch Ezra through narrowed eyes. The young boy was immediately embarrassed by his attitude, the man was examining him from head to toe. 

– Are you going to stare at me much longer before leaving? asked the man, his voice a blend of lethargy and disinterest.