hit the final oak step

ving room fireplace stretched her s

center on the importe

on in his right hand. His eyes w

lowly turning the glossy p

lift her chin, treating

l bottom slammed against the expensive marb

of his tailored suit jacket and pu

n pen and quickly slashed a str

he binding and pushed it to the

insley to take it with the exact postu

walked

paper. The number five thousan

freezing mockery cr

. "That's more than enough for a Greyhound bus ticket back

y turned a page

again," Meredith added coldly. "We are

say a single

e, slender fingers and pinched

shed in Preston's eyes. He leane

t poor people. Throw some c

check up in the

ith both hands and ripped

aring paper echoed violently

froze mid-air ov

o torn halves together

al, and elegant, like she was dis

l its color, turning a

a, pointing a rigid fin

little bitch!"

ised her h

and let the shredded pi

air, landing all over the pristine marble ta

ead into Preston

ying a piercing weight t

s money is too dirt

ut a harsh, b

reets by tomorrow! Those bottom-feeding parents of you

nored his

as wearing a thick cashmere cardigan em

rapidly, undoing

er shoulders, leaving herself in nothi

igan carelessly onto the pile of

tie was compl

s on her table and wrinkle

eredith yelled toward the kitchen. "

strap of her canvas

nd walked straight toward the

amed curses

re dead to us! Don't you dare come crawli

d her hand around the freezing

cold smile to

the heavy

nto the heated living room, whipping Ai

landing, Katharina stoo

n, shivering back, her eyes shin

pped over t

the sickening hypocrisy behind her w

d slammed the heavy

oorframe, instantly slicing

n the pitch-black asp

air. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her