The screen flickered, a prompt appearing in the center of the display.

*Password Required.*

“It’s encrypted,” Lucian said, his jaw tightening.

“I think I know how to open it,” I said, stepping closer to the desk.

“How?” he asked, looking up at me.

“My mother’s middle name,” I said. “Elena used to write to her. I found the old letters.”

He stared at me for a long moment, as if trying to read my mind.

“Type it,” he said, turning the laptop toward me.

My fingers trembled as I reached for the keyboard.

I typed the name: *Clara.*

The screen blinked, a red error message flashing on the screen.

*Incorrect.*

I frowned, thinking back to the old letters.

My mother had another name, a name she only used in her official medical correspondence.

I typed: *Vivian.*

The drive let out a faint hum, and the red prompt turned green.

A single folder appeared on the desktop, labeled with a date from three years ago.

Lucian leaned in, his shoulder brushing mine.

He clicked the folder open, revealing a series of scanned documents and audio files.