ut through the penthouse

er skull. Her eyes felt swollen, her throat raw. She lay frozen on the

the man was

square jaw covered in dark stubble, and broad shoulders marked with long, angry red scratches.

ew that crest. It belonged to the Montgomery family, t

cracked‑screen phone out from under her torn jeans. Fine spiderwe

calls and a text from Saint Jude'

to cardiac arrest following respiratory

t. A cold numbness washed down her

rust of bread with her, the gentle soul who had wasted away in a state

ravelly groan. His heavy arm reached acro

nd a sharp, tearing pain in her lower abdomen nearly brought her to her knees. She grabbed

er neck, collarbone, and shoulders were covered in dark purple bruises.

g her skin until it burned bright pink. She hated the water. She hated the

hird loop down, and tucked it into her jeans. When sh

hrew them away, and erased their names from security logs. If he woke up and realized

a single, crumpled one-hundred-dollar bill. H

grabbed her red lipstick from her purse, and

e service. Kee

red-dollar bill dire

he low crackle of security radios echoed thro

vate terrace. The cold morning wind whipped her dark hair across her face, sixty stories above the Man

ung her legs over the con

hot through her right ankle, stealing her breath. She didn't

ter, the suite do

rsonal security, rushed in with two

s pound, but his eyes were already clearing, turning into pools of obsidian.

ide of the bed. The faint scent o

locked onto

eside the mirror, right beneath the mo

ent comple

two fingers, and crushed it into a tight ball in his

Alistair's voice was a low, lethal wh

the morning," Arthur stammered, his face pale. "It was a coordinated

ous nail marks scored across his back and chest. He walked to the open

, his eyes narrowing to razor slits.

own every private orthopedic clinic and emergency room in Manhattan. Check every fem

mory of that burning red flame mark s

nded, his voice shaking the quiet room. "Even if you