She had been watching him for weeks.

It took a while to be sure she had the right one. Flashes of childhood memory, glimpses of faces, voices amid the... But she was sure now, and simply waiting.

The man at the door had been there many times before. A business partner, perhaps -- the curtains were always closed when he arrived. This time, however, there was a faint shaft of light. Doku moved closer. She didn't need to see more now, but she had been watching for so long that her body adjusted itself naturally to the opportunity.

Inside, he and the visitor were standing, talking. She watched as he moved his hand to the visitor's head. This did not look like business. A sigh, fingers trailing along the skin. So gentle. She saw light in his eyes that she had not seen in her weeks of watching.

She had seen how roughly he treated his mate and children. The girl he had been bonded to might care for him, but to him, the family was obligation. Yet this was tenderness. Love. She wondered if perhaps, on that fateful night, he had been going along to help ensure that no one would suspect this secret.

Was that a wisp of regret? She had felt none for the others. None even seeing his family. Yet this visitor... Doku had given up such tenderness long ago, and she had never questioned her decision...

Strength.

The visitor left the door unlocked as he slipped silently into the night, back to his other life. Doku slipped in to his lover's house, bringing her life with her. A life forgotten.

When it was done, she thought of the visitor. But sparing him the sight was as close to apology as she would ever go.