The night was thick with the kind of electricity that lingers after a grand finale — the kind that settles in your chest like static, itching just under your skin. The crowd had roared, fireworks had lit up the sky, and the Four Horsemen had once again disappeared in a puff of impossible wonder.

Well … three of them, anyway. Because Jack wasn't with you.

You, Daniel, and Merritt walked through the quiet streets like echoes of a magic act just performed. No words. Just footsteps.

The adrenaline was starting to drain, leaving something heavier behind. That familiar ache in your chest tightened.

Because Jack still wasn’t with you.

The loss still didn’t sit right with you. It never had.

Even after everything — after the reveal, after the truth about The Eye, after the spectacular chaos you still hadn’t let yourself fully grieve. Maybe part of you was still waiting for a twist, a final reveal, a rabbit-out-of-the-hat moment.

But the truth was ... Jack was gone.

He had died. Or so they told you.

His death had been so sudden, so cruel, and so … unbelievable. It never fully processed. And maybe that’s because, deep down, something in you refused to accept it.

But you hadn’t known. Hadn’t been in on it. That wasn’t your role. They said it was to protect you — because you cared about him too much. Because of the way you looked at Jack, and the way he looked at you. That you’d give it away. That your eyes would say everything before your mouth even did.

So now, here you were. In front of that tree. The one in the middle of the New Orleans City Park. The card tucked into the bark like a message from another world. The Lionel Shrike tree, that was the name. You remembered now. Going to finally meet the person behind all of it.

But the gate was chained shut, locked tight like it hadn’t been touched in years. And it felt ... final.

Daniel stepped closer, frowning. Merritt rattled the gate and let out a soft, “Well, it's locked.”

You took a slow breath, your chest tight, staring through the bars. Your fingers curled around the cold metal.

And then— A voice. Behind the gate.

A voice you knew like a second heartbeat. “Didn’t I tell you? Nothin’s ever locked.”

Your breath caught. Your body went completely still.

And there he was. Jack.