ouch, Mr. Whiskers curled up at his feet. Briana had gone

sic financial formulas, trying to brush up on the skills she hadn't used in four years. But the words blurre

anding on a crumpled receipt from a pharmacy.

like a physical blo

wasn't much, but it was theirs. It was filled with second-han

lent. He had spent the last three hours calling every investor in his contacts, begging for a lifel

e, replaced by a hollow, desperate exhaustion. He looked

aid, his voice hoarse. "I

den behind her back. Her fingers were white-knuckled a

y were having a baby, that this was a sign, that things would get better. But

und of funding, Keven had been forced to sign a personal unlimited liability guarantee. If Nexus declared bankruptcy, the creditors would come for everything. The

ion to protect them, only to lose everything he had worked for. He would give u

. A choice that would

he divorce papers on the kitchen t

yes wide with shock, then confusion, then a dawning, horrific heartbreak. "Why?" he

nt to be poor, Keven," she had said, her face a mask of ice. "I can't

n in his eyes. She had to make him hate her. It was the only way he would let her go. It w

ely, replaced by a cold, dead void. He had packed a bag and walke

on her. A tear slipped down her cheek, landi

undation of Keven's new life. It was the fuel he used to build

no idea that the moment the divorce was final, the very fir

cash and run. He didn't know that her lawyer friend had helped her, for a steep fee, to route the funds through a specialized S

that apartment-the only thing of value he had l

think about that right now. She couldn't think about the debt she was s

the present. She had

past was a graveyard. She couldn't dig it up wi

h. She looked down at Leo, his face peaceful in

ssional outfit Briana had lent her-a navy blazer and a crisp white shirt that was slightly too big in the shoulder

d her life together. She just