lexand

ide the tinted windows feeling like a movie I was no longer a part of. The lawyer, a kind-faced man named Arthur, had arranged everything. A private jet.

hock and grief. Father. The word was a

ar of the jet engines a physical force, my old phone-the one I hadn't

judgment, my thumb

y' s video, but she was nowhere in sight. The room was pristine. He pan

timbre that used to feel like home. "Just checking in.

less, so practiced. I

ilton," I said,

sion a perfect pantomime of regret. "I promise I'll make it

y. The anniversary of a

the words tasting like p

for me. If I ever betrayed you, I'd deserve to lose everything, to be struck by lightn

tared at his face, the face I h

" he said, blowing a kiss to

d handed it to Arthur' s as

sleep of pure exhaustion. I woke up to the gen

. A sprawling, ultra-modern fortress carved into the side of a mountain, ove

y. But his eyes... his eyes were a startlingly familiar shade of blue. My eyes. He stood there, looking at me, hi

his voice rough with

came rushing out in a tidal wave of sobs. I stumbled forward, and he caught me, his arms surprisi

accident he believed was no accident. Fearing for my safety, he had hidden me away, but the people entrusted with

unconditional support. He was furious about Hamilton, his protective ra

he first time in days. "He took my work, my

ding across his face. "Just like your moth

host developer with a criminal record. I was Anya Warner, heires

n under my new name. Hamilton, in his arrogance, had never bothered with the legal minutiae. He' d left all the intellectual property under the name "A.

o prepare for my de

perks of having a billionaire dad who shared my passion for speed and engineering. I needed to clear

have pulled some strings to find out

g had happened. "I wanted to surprise you. A little anniversary fun.

life, to make it seem like this was all perfectly re

word, heading straight for the simulation pod. I strapped myself in, pul

lton called out, his voice ti

, the vehicle dynamics, the code

canopy. He frowned, his body language stiffening. He walked a few feet away, his back to me, his voice a

ruthless venture capitalist who h

-soled shoes silent on the polished concrete floor. I moved into the

wl. "The merger is at a critical stage. We can't have her past crop

adjusted the parameters. A little malfunction. A scare. Enough to make her miscarry. Tragic accident. She'l

rld st

was an assassination

fire that burned away every last vestige of love, every shred

imulator, my face a mask of cold fury. I strapped myself back

his voice returning to

nitialization button. The pod whirred to life, t

on the screen was flickering, showing critical errors. The road ahead, a treacherous mountain pa

s adju

s per hour. The impact was a bone-jarring, virtual explosion of light and sound. In the real worl

ms wrapping around my stomach, a futile att

d into darkness was Hamilton's voice, laced with fake panic, shouting my nam

lling her behind him, shielding