eft the suffocating atmosphere of the dining r

nd twisted the lock. She walked over to the ma

and typed her full na

headlines were brutal. They called her a gol

stigative article about her sud

relied entirely on her face to secure minor roles. Any mention of her early indie film w

was standing on a low-budget red carpet, clutching a cheap promotional prop.

ical difference between the girl in the photo and the

ng into the Riggs family's business de

original owner's family business had

now. This marriage was just a business transaction for Archer,

ed the browser and clicked on an encr

. She typed a long, complex string of nu

ive un

housands of thumbnail images. They were all pictures

d on the f

gh a cracked door. From behind a curtain. From a

e was playing by himself on the massive law

ons bleeding into her chest. It was a twisted, agonizing mix of desperate, suffocating l

in Aileen's throat.

er her eyelashes and

he box on the desk and wipe

d, coming from right outside the study door. Then, a maid's hushed, trembling voice filtered thr

ny voice whi

. She reached out and s

on the rug. She walked toward the door, mo

ndle and yanked th

f the hallway carpet. He was holdi

His small shoulders jerked up, and he i

he saw the raw, unfiltered t

like someone had driven a n

a hug. Her arms twitched at her sides, but s

break chara

features into a ma

n at the boy with a gaze full of c