d with a sharp

the car smelled faintly of cedarwood and a clean, sharp Cologne I couldn't place, but my

backseat, Aeron d

look my way. The electronic child locks were on, the dar

rose and fell in shallow, exhausted as he slept, one tiny, dirt-smud

ngers stroked the boy's black curls, over and over, so soft, so

, his voice raspy, barely reaching above the hum of the

aisle. "You're a sick, terrifying man. You think having money means you can just pull a woman

the tinted window. They weren't angry. That was the worst part. They were heavy, bloo

ollars from my personal account three mon

e in the suburbs and out of the city news. And Julian? Julian is sitting in that empty church right now calculating whether

t up my wrist, but I barely felt it. "You're lying! You bought my family?! You

n his lap. He didn't argue nor did he raise his

te ramp into a subterranean garage. Wrought-iron

cut, the silenc

urmured, openin

around to scream at him, his arm reached across the backseat. His fingers wra

is shoulder with his left arm, then d

ed out, my heel catching on the hem of my dre

mly into my wrist as he dragged me toward an express elevator with a glowing blue eye sc

!" I spat, trying to dig

scanner. A sharp beep rang out, and

my mascara smeared down my cheeks in gray tracks, and my face was blotchy and pale. Beside me,

d. My ears popped. M

i

lowed the sound of my ragged breathing. Sunlight poured through three-story

home, Yo

raight into Aeron's side as a

lack uniforms, housekeepers, kitchen staff, and an old man wi

all bo

ked up, his eyes were wet, his face lined with genuine, painful joy. "T

hand out of Aeron's grip, stumbling back un

hest heaving. "Why are you looking at

"Madam... it's Thomas. I've... I've taken care of this h

bed behind my eyes. "Stop playing along with him! How much is he paying

oked at me with this sickening, heavy pity. The same look th

n said softly, handing the sleeping

he child gently as the staff bowed again and

crashing back, hea

eyes darted around the cold, modern room, searching for a door, a win

dropped to