s, my life wa

from the ground up. I drew blueprints for his office buildings, designed his minimalist

e of my buildings: solid, wel

ught Chloe

eyes and soft smiles. Liam was instantly

started

s voice cool even as his hand rested on my sh

owers in a vase, and his eyes would soften. "Why

low hum of criticism that s

y chin so I had to look at him. "I will. Just as soo

ght her cars, jewelry, and designer clothes. He let his staff, t

ied in fro

I had my

stom-made for me over the years. Each one was a miniature version of a project we had d

cate, and now, they were a

odel, a tiny beach house with a wraparound porch. I drove to the bridge overloo

mplained of a stomacha

guests. He turned to me, his expression unreadable

The room

ridiculous," I

ded, his voice a whip crack in the sudd

de screamed at me to walk away, but Liam' s gaze was a physical force, pinning me in place. I knelt.

the fir

the biggest project of my career, a new city art museum. The final p

dentally" spilling a large cup of black coffe

ruin of my work,

idn't ask what happened. He saw Chloe' s tear-st

e hissed. "You can' t stand t

t was an acci

down to the basement, shoving me into the server room

he said, his voice echoing in the small space. "Mayb

rapped. I pounded on the door until my fists were raw, sc

y a word. I just went to my studio, took the second model, a min

of cruelty from him, each feigned innocence from he

ere gone. Only four

-sixth was

, a tech prodigy attending a prestigious academy on a ful

e chain I cou

defense. "Liam, honey, what about those cool drones you

ulging her. "A

"Ava, you can help.

s never flown a drone in her life, let alone one th

ght teach you some humility." He leaned in close, his voice a venomous whisper. "Or perhaps

knew. He knew Ethan

no c

one, handing the controls to a giddy Chloe. The projectiles were non-le

coached Chloe, as if they were playing a ga

no longer pretending to be innocent, had a predatory gleam in

ckening thud. The pain was sharp, ele

Liam cheered.

oulder. She was intentionally aiming for me, her inexperience causing her to miss vital organs by mere inc

on one of detached amusement. He wasn'

. As I crumpled to the grass,

ring into a nightmarish soundscape. My last conscious thought was of the ni

rything w

-