steps with heavy, angry thuds. He needed to get to his study.

landing, he heard a small

o!" a tiny vo

tler's grip. She ran up the stairs as fast as her short legs could carry her. She c

gether. He did not like children. He did not li

He kept his voice low so he would not scare her more. "

n her round cheeks. "I don't want yo

d pulled out a clean, white silk handkerchief. He wiped the tears

tly into her watery eyes. "Tell me

her hands. She peeked over her shoulder at the bottom of the stairs, whe

haking. "I was running in the garden yesterday

les in his neck went tight. "The

yes shut. "Mommy told me to. She said if I told you the

tt like a physical

own the stairs at Jada. His eye

e out. She collapsed onto the ma

Rosey boarding school in Switzerland immediately," Evertt ordered. His voice was comple

please! She is my baby!" She tried to crawl up the steps,

the way up the stairs. He went straight to his study and slammed the h

crystal decanter and poured three fingers of amber whiskey into a glass. He drank it straight down.

bottom drawer and pulled out a thick manila folder. It was the

rted reading the pages again

failing businesses. Then, his eyes stopped on a specific paragraph. I

he man was a monster. He had a reputation in the u

He stared at the ceiling. A terrible, unc

ause she wanted his money and his status. He

t if sh

se it was the only way to esc

more complicated than he had believed? He pushed the thought away, his jaw tightening. It did not change th