Rain fell in a steady rhythm, each drop a mournful beat upon the umbrellas that shielded the gathered mourners. The air hung heavy with the scent of wet earth and the quiet sorrow of those who had come to pay their respects.Connor Matthews stood at a distance, his gaze fixed on the freshly dug grave. He wasn't a man of crowds or formalities, but for Jim, he had to be here. Jim Matthews—his foster father, the man who had saved him from a life of violence and darkness—now lay beneath the sodden ground.