ol, my mother had already

e on me, but with a neighbor and a teac

as under fourteen, she fa

heinous it made headli

often followed the ne

lance between me, Nancy, and our mother in our fea

vile actions, they chos

sea, hoping she'd find a life free fr

e blink of an eye, over a decade passed, transforming

th the Cross family, and my grandparents, feeling they owed

engagement see

e was furious and immediately called Isaiah Cross, Pr

he'd give us a

ston showed up at our

ing at my feet, "Claire, I was wrong. I didn't mean to ruin your engage

's security guards lifted her and m

dy to fight the gu

arents rushed out, their faces d

hbors, my grandfather, with a grim e

, Preston, his face tense,

e Yates family fell through, most of the family business would go to

"tragic" love story b

debts, Nancy worked at a nightclub, where she

ston even helped Nancy eliminate her father's

es, forbade Preston from dating a murderer

reston's feelings, gave Nancy a large sum o

o study abroad, and t

nt, he noticed my face resembled his former lover's, so

of despica

support their relationship, but he d

he thought was a "

the Yates family, so he could indirec

de me laugh

rily spat, "Claire Yates, you vicious snake, siccing my