as a dull throb, nothing compared to the agony her words had inflicted. You destroyed them. He knew she believed it. He also knew she was a pawn in a much larger, dirtier gam

"Mr. Sinclair, your hand... Sh

ay with a dismissive

embling hand, the smoke doing little to calm the storm inside him. He let the blood

ns. She went to the courthouse, burying herself in the familiar rituals of her profession. The conflict with

ssing a young female game developer online. Azura won. The judge ordered the defendant to pay a substantial settlement and issue a

a! You tore him to shreds." Then her expression grew serious. "But be careful.

it off. "I've d

and the dark circles under her eyes. "Is everything okay with

to talk about Killian. "Just a lot

way home, her body aching. As she turned the corner onto her street in Brookl

up. Her hea

e windows of the fourth floor of

walk, their faces upturned, lit by the flashing red and blue lights. Leah's warning ec

he entrance, but a firefighter blocked her path. "Ma'am,

that floor!" she y

crowd say it. "I heard it started in

y fear she'd felt in Killian's office, seized he

them this was arson, but her bag was empty. The phone. She'd left

her. The files. The hard copies of the evidence she had been secretly compiling for her father's appeal. The originals were in a sa

se them. They w

ath her hands as she hauled herself up, floor by floor. The smoke grew thicker, stinging her eyes and choking her lungs. S

o of black smoke and blistering heat. She crawled on her hands and knees, feeling her way along th

e apartment. She ran, her lungs screaming for air. She was almost there when a loud crack echoed above he

e world tilted, the roar of the fire fading to a distant hum. Her last cohere