Chapter 96

• Chapter Ninety Six
• The night after glory was quieter than Rick expected. Starlight City still buzzed behind him—chants, lights, praise—but Rick chose distance over celebration. He wanted silence. He wanted familiaristy. And more than anything, he wanted home.
• The engine of his Maybach hummed softly as it rolled out of Starlight City, the headlights slicing through the dark highway that led toward Orion City. The road stretched long and lonely, illuminated only by passing streetlights and the faint glow of his dashboard.