he air as Xochi stared at it. Her breath hitched, a strange feeling of unease spreadin

e. Its weight felt wrong in her hands-too heavy for its siz

it over, but there was nothing more than a

't belo

hill down her spine. They weren't a warning-they were a command.

s it Chris? Had he alre

room. The mansion was silent, but it wasn't the peaceful silence she had hoped for. It

. Her eyes scanned the elegant handwriting, barely able to make sense

t him. He w

deeper with each word she read. It could have been anyone. Anyone in this cold mans

ure-but he hadn't exactly been unkind. Had he? He had given her the basics-food, shelter, a purpose, even if it wasn't one she wanted. But

She couldn't trust this note. It could be a trick, designed to get

osed her eyes and breathed in deeply, trying to steady hersel

ag

act natural, as if her heart wasn't thundering in her

Her cold gaze swept over Xochi, taking in her disheveled state, th

one indifferent, as if this was not

e unease back into the corners of her mi

needed to p

ned and walked down the hallway. Xochi followed quickly, the

made everything feel even more isolating, more unreal. There were no other sounds-no servants bustling arou

lver cutlery, and crystal glasses. The chairs were arranged neatly, l

at the head of the table. His eyes, cold and unyielding, flicke

, his voice as steady

y. "I didn't realize

but it was devoid of warmth. "You're not," he rep

ed standing, watching from the doorway, an ever-present figure who see

eemed to close in as Chris began eating, his motions measured, controlled. There

asked suddenly, the question esc

shifted from his plate to her eyes, locking onto her

lmost amused. But there was something else in it-s

look away. "I

the door creaked open again. Xochi's heart

d imposing, with a look that seemed out of place in the elegant dining room. He wor

ris didn't acknowledge the new arrival, b

door and nodded toward Xochi. "Mada

lt through her syst

me M

al, like a seal bein

aller with every breath. She hadn't even

to Chris Moreau. She w

t her life, as she knew it

never left Xochi. The stranger's gaze, too, lingered, calculating. She opened her mouth