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+--- Thread: Amputation [Belizna] (/thread-1981.html)
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RE: Amputation [Belizna] - Adrian Kane - 09-08-2026
Micro-expressions flickered across Rachel’s pretty face. Vulnerability. But resolve too. She was like a startled bird that had landed too close to a hawk, instinctively sensing danger but hadn't determined whether it was safer to remain motionless or flee instantly. When she finally extended her hand, her palm was slightly cool, her grip brief and hesitant before she retreated behind the shield of her coffee cup. Adrian’s handshake was gentle enough to meet her palm, but his enveloped hers through sheer anatomy. There was nothing he could do about that. But it was a touch shared on the promise that he held back because he chose to. Because he was a decent person.
But instantly a counter to that thought replied in his own mind with an opposing one that rippled like a stone thrown into water from a far distant shore. You are better than her. You are better than-
Speaking out loud interrupted the thought before it carried itself too far.
“I’m an investor, primarily," Adrian replied, his tone calm despite himself.
He gestured at the room around them slightly, "I enjoy real-estate and entrepreneurship. So i've been helping Natalie manage some of the upfront capital required for a restoration of this scale. I haven't actually been out on-site in a few months, so I thought It was time to see how the work is progressing.”
Her direct question regarding his relationship to the estate's residents ignited a flicker of amusement that he couldn’t help from touching the corners of his mouth. A heated memory of Natalie suddenly surfaced. Sex was an amusement, but a common one. He had no qualms about using it to gain power should the game take him to such a place. It hadn't. But it wasn't of Natalie that his thoughts lingered.
The notion of calling Jay a friend felt almost quaint after the past few days of conflict between them. But as the strategic blueprint for his future began to crystallize in the back of his mind, he realized the utility of claiming that connection might be useful now.
"A friend," Adrian repeated, letting the word roll off his tongue as though he wasn’t accustomed to claiming the title. He took a slow sip of his own coffee before nodding in agreement. "Yes. Yes, I suppose you could say Jay and I are friends."
He held Rachel’s eye, noting the way she processed the information, before pivoting the conversation to center on her. A girl this high-strung, this steeped in quiet insecurity and hidden friction, didn't wander into a sprawling neoclassical estate in the middle of winter without a reason.
"And you, Rachel?" Adrian asked, tilting his head slightly all politely curious. "Are you one of Natalie’s protégés?”