The oppressive darkness held the room in a suffocating grip, the only defiance a single, defiant lamp casting a pool of meager light on the otherwise impenetrable gloom. It was 3 am, the witching hour, and the silence in the vast office building was broken only by the ragged gasps of a single occupant. His face, etched with worry and a profound weariness that defied his years, was illuminated in the harsh lamplight. In his trembling hand, a photograph – a lifeline in a storm. It depicted a little girl, no older than five, her eyes sparkling with a joy that seemed utterly alien in the present context.
" She would have been all grown up by now......, " he rasped, his voice raw with emotion as he traced the faded image of his daughter, Evelyn. A mere flicker of a smile crossed his lips, a fr
