n the freezing hospital stairwell, her br

go to voicemail, a sharp clic

Her voice shook slightly, betrayi

gh came from the ot

not H

Her voice slid into Corinna'

phone so tightly her knuckles turned stark white.

e asked, using the exact tone a wife

he distinct sound of a shower running.

t. She swallowed it down, fo

ne," Corinna said. Her

ely too pleased with herself. "He is in the shower. H

e driven directly unde

rned with unshed tears, but she bit down on her lower lip until

her tone shifting to fake pity. "Holland mentioned yo

ering breath. She pulled t

e red button a

d down the rough concrete wall until she hit the floor. She

blared from the hallway

de b

e sound ripped her back from

s of her eyes with the back of her hand. The despair i

well door and walked back

up, her eyes

ount shortly," Corinna lied.

ld ask questions. She walked str

ub the remaining makeup off her face. She looked at

the heavy pearl necklace resting on her co

her clutch. It landed at the botto

he hospital. The wind had died down, le

ened a secure messaging app. Sh

liquidation channe

antly with a sing

shoved the phone into her poc

he dropped her last few coins into the me

rinna stared out the dirty window at the glowing skyline of Man

her phone. Her thumbs moved

the Hampton estate that legally belonged to her. D

ven her as a reward for her obedience

front of the massive iron

he biometric scanner. The lock

was dead silent. I

hrough the dark hallway and went straight up

the doors to her

perfect order. They were tailored to her exact

alenciaga gown and ripped it off. She threw the h

g light and phone tripod. Holland's assistant had purchased it for her years ago, instructing her to occasionally take 'socialite lifestyle' photos to post online as window dres

-mask. She tied it behind her head. It covered her eyes and

er lungs filled with the

ped the live stream button, and turn

asting a harsh white