the agreement on the tablet's cool, glass screen.

twenty-f

appearances a

listed in unfl

business deal disg

r suddenly feeling too thin. She looked u

y m

id, his voice devoid of emotion. "And watching his suffering as he loses you to me will bring

sh. And because of that, Averie believed it. It mad

ce," she said,

nd of in

tated flatly. "I w

w the stakes were real. She wouldn't

ding's face. He seemed to admire her pragmati

nd authoritative. "Initiate a transfer of one hundred

at her e

ty net she'd established years ago, a secret from both her family an

to the person on the other en

ed against her ribs, a frantic, wild rhythm. She stared at her own phone, wa

chime broke

on from her

. She stared at the screen, at the new balance displayed. The number wa

as r

as independence. It was the armor she needed to

ing Fielding's. All doubt had vani

e said. "I

igned her name at the bottom of the agreement.

elding's eyes. It was there and gone in an instant, but

e tablet from her. "From this moment

aimlessly. They were already pulling up to a towering sk

vate lobby and then into an elevator tha

t but screamed wealth, from the modern art on the walls to the floor-to-ceiling wind

his tone suggesting this was an inevita

rea. He nodded respectfully at Fielding. "Sir. As r

h garment in its own protective bag. On a long table, dozens of

would have cost a small fortune. She was beginning to und

e door off the main living area. "As for your personal belonging

. "No. Don't. There's

break. A complete e

. "Some things are necessary," he said.

etting the w

ur appointment at City

physical shock. Tomorrow? She had agreed

nt, Mark, and was issuing a series of quiet, rapid-fire instructions. As if