Ross

pushed open the heavy glass doors of the ex

iter in a crisp white shirt stepped into my path immediately, his

, this establish

d a single, manicured hand and flicked her wrist. The waiter inst

her. I kept my spine perfectly straight. When the waiter approached

one might look at a stain on a white carpet. She didn't bother with greetings. She reached into her Bir

Isabella said, her voice dropping to a low,

page. I flipped straight to the back, scannin

t sever all forms of contact with Dante Vitiello. Any breach of these te

days," I

ter, Elena? Not going to play the tragic, incorruptible martyr this time? I offered you a million y

the side was worn off. I had bought it at the campus bookstore the day I got accepte

he expensive parchment and signed my name in sh

es widened slightly, catching a flicker of genuine sh

separated her stack, and pus

o the offshore account listed on page four. Within twenty-four hours. Or

hands on the table. "If you try to play games with this family, lit

sitting form. I looked down at

er-in-law a long and healt

the cafe, leaving Isabella

t. I kept my pace steady, walking aimlessly down Fifth Avenue for six blocks, checki

dingy, underground cybercafe. The air smelled of stale sweat and old electronics. I

t I had set up months ago under a

ing Transfer: $50,000,00

w I was holding rushed out of my lungs.

nal's history, and took the s

off my trench coat, throwing it over the back of a chair. As I reached f

d across the screen. It was an update from an account I h

the notif

prenuptial agreement. The background of the photo was the polished oak wood of

cument was a man's hand. I recognized the distinct vein patterns, the t

c. I had bought it for his birthday during our third year together, using every cent I

slow, dark smile stretched across my fa

my death sentence. It's your