ya

avy in my pocket, burning ag

ng room, letting the silence of t

ba

by blood to a man who corru

dn't k

throat, but the alternative was

child in t

to become a mo

e me-a polished trophy, dusted off for

ed to

of hope that maybe, just maybe, this marri

wn to the

ver room tucked away b

didn't know t

"legitimate" business networks, long before he decided I was be

gged

muscle memory taking over as I access

lance system he had instal

my was liste

life, the digital hum

Liam's voice filtered

noon. He was at

le voice whined. Ava. "She

thing," L

dn't even sound like he was trying to be mean; he was

. A placeholder. Y

nded. "You gave her fifty

, a dry, hum

bad for the merger with the Rossi family. They li

have t

ce the deal is signed, I'll send her to the country house. She c

the t

Maya is just... damaged g

the headp

bling so hard I ne

ged g

igi

cking the nights I h

initiate intimacy, only to be pushed aw

gaslighting

lf-worth, making me feel inadequate wh

sharp, physical, like a

in, something hard

a

alculat

" I whispered to the empty roo

s ban

too

iness hit me, forcing

ng si

r of the parasite

o

para

tr

d never let me go. He would use the child

d my bur

the cli

edure," I said. My voice s

the receptionis

es

he

n as po

ung

rs and packed

he ess

rypted hard drive contai

zzed on the

as L

ate. Don't

n't r

ed his

block

ked the hou

le

as my

edge of the b

ion. I needed to know

low-level soldier named Dante who still

now about Marc

came an

Liam. He's feeding her info to manipulate the Bo

t the glow

t just a

as a

istract Liam, to make him sloppy, while

hasing a skirt to see t

re all

they thought they ha

oom and splashed co

y reflection

. Ga

ere burning w

a victi

a wi

is world had two ch

ed my

a pen, my ha

will give you a clean future, even if it means I have to walk through hell a

ed the

, I woul

would star