“We didn’t steal anything, sir,” the small voice said from the doorway. “We only wanted you to save our mom.” Arthur Bellamy turned his head toward the sound so quickly...
PART 2 AND FINAL The music stopped so suddenly that the silence felt staged. Every glass paused halfway to someone’s mouth. Every jeweled wrist froze in the golden light...
“Emilio died that same night.” Clara heard the words, but for several seconds they did not become real. They floated above the hospital bed like something spoken in another language,...
PART 2 AND FINAL The paper in April’s hand was so worn it looked as if it had survived fire, rain, and a child’s fear. Miguel could barely lift...
Diego and Leticia were in Miami when the first call came through. They were sitting beneath a white umbrella at a private beach club in South Beach, drinking cocktails that...
The laboratory said fifteen business days. It sounded like nothing when the woman at the shipping counter said it. Fifteen business days. Three ordinary weeks. People waited longer for car...
PART 2 AND FINAL When Clara Bennett walked into the store the next morning, she immediately felt that something was wrong. It was not the silence, because luxury stores...
The young doctor’s words froze the emergency room. “She wasn’t only beaten,” he said, his voice careful. “Her bloodwork shows traces of a sedative.” Colonel Mariana Ibarra did not move....
She opened the folder now. Five hundred and twelve images. She scrolled through speeches, wineglasses, blurred smiles, and parking-garage shadows until her finger froze above the trackpad. Four men stood...
Grant turned another page. “You documented failure patterns?” “Yes.” “For systems you didn’t own?” “For systems nobody else was watching.” His thumb paused on a handwritten note in the margin....
The toddler saw Ava and shouted, “Ava Mama!” Dottie, the owner, nearly dropped a plate of pancakes. Ava closed her eyes for one second. “Of course this is happening before...
“What did you do?” Spencer demanded. “Seriously, what was that?” “I talked to him.” “You talked to him? Maya, that kid has had half of Chicago’s child psychologists working with...
“You think I wanted this?” he asked. “I think you wanted saving and didn’t care who drowned.” He turned. “You don’t understand the kind of men we’re dealing with.” “No....
“And if I’m not sensible?” His gaze dropped once more to my stained hands before returning to my face. “Then try not to be careless.” That night, I signed the...
But at that small table, in the presence of a dead woman’s scarf and a living child’s trust, all her polished language abandoned her. “I’m sorry,” she said simply. Mason...
“Then what do you want from me?” His hand closed gently around my wrist. Not hard. Never hard. But firm enough that my whole body understood before my mind did....
Maya stepped back. “Do not touch me.” “Maya.” “Don’t.” His hand closed around her wrist anyway. It was not a punch. It was not the kind of violence people easily...
“What do I get?” I asked. “Money,” she said immediately. “Legal protection. A clean agreement. No claim on your company, your shop, your home, or future earnings. I will cover...
“You the new work-study kid?” “Yes, sir.” “Kitchen’s downstairs. Dorm’s fourth floor. Classes start Monday. Don’t let them get in your head.” Jonah nodded. People had been trying to get...
“And what was outside?” Matteo’s eyes returned to Clara. “Trouble.” Clara told herself not to be ridiculous. Men like Matteo used intensity because people responded to it. He had probably...