e a monument to the lies it housed. Chloe drove past the main gate, parking her car

that place home. Now, she saw i

manicured lawns. An

uine sound she hadn't heard in years. Kasey Webster was beside him, radiant and glowing, her hand resting poss

e

ppy, complete family, basking in the la

ges of grief were burned away by the white-hot flame of rag

service entrance. She slipped into the house through the kitchen, her movements quiet a

Francisco. The scent of his cologne hung in the air, a clo

igner shoes she rarely wore, was a small, discreet safe set into

e phone and a single manila folder bea

rampant on a field of blue. A symbol

ensingtons. When they learned of her existence, they reached out and offered to take her back. But there was a price. The family's rul

She had chosen her husband.

no

s. How could she be foolish enoug

hone, her hand steady. The trem

from memory. It connec

ce answered. "Chloe.

er. "Colter," she said, her own voice r

acceptance. "Understood. The arrangement with the Beaumo

evoid of any hesitation. "Send me D

r said. "Welcome b

profound it made her knees weak. But beneath the

his study across the hall. It was low, hushed, but the door was s

kes her 'vitamin' tonight," he was say

ta

ive years, just before bed, Francisco would bring her a glass of warm milk and a s

tamin. It was

retch. They hadn't just denied her a marriage; they had denied her the poss

tion that was clearly feigned for his lover's benefit. "Once the time is right, I

e door, to scream, to claw at his lying face was overwhelming. But she fo

he stumbled into the en-suite bathroom and leaned over the toilet, shoving two fingers down he

f sorrow for a lost love, but tears of rage for her own

She looked up, meeting her own eyes in the mirror. The woman staring back was

sage. It was Damon Beaumont

she typed a message, her thum

nsington. Regarding the proposa

und sense of severance. The old Chloe, the

re of the doting husband, his smile warm, his eyes full of feigned

ed, his voice smooth as silk

She gave him a smile, brighter and warmer than any she had given

inst his, and popped it into her mouth. She took a long d

d tucked safely under her tongue, was spat discreetly into her hand. The rest o

the empty glass on her nightstand and his should

as w

ok the small white pill from her jewelry box. She stared at it

the bathroom and flus

t, watching it swirl