the agreement on the tablet's cool, glass screen.
twenty-f
appearances a
listed in unfl
business deal disg
r suddenly feeling too thin. She looked u
y m
id, his voice devoid of emotion. "And watching his suffering as he loses you to me will bring
sh. And because of that, Averie believed it. It mad
ce," she said,
nd of in
tated flatly. "I w
w the stakes were real. She wouldn't
ding's face. He seemed to admire her pragmati
nd authoritative. "Initiate a transfer of one hundred
at her e
ty net she'd established years ago, a secret from both her family an
to the person on the other en
ed against her ribs, a frantic, wild rhythm. She stared at her own phone, wa
chime broke
on from her
. She stared at the screen, at the new balance displayed. The number wa
as r
as independence. It was the armor she needed to
ing Fielding's. All doubt had vani
e said. "I
igned her name at the bottom of the agreement.
elding's eyes. It was there and gone in an instant, but
e tablet from her. "From this moment
aimlessly. They were already pulling up to a towering sk
vate lobby and then into an elevator tha
t but screamed wealth, from the modern art on the walls to the floor-to-ceiling wind
his tone suggesting this was an inevita
rea. He nodded respectfully at Fielding. "Sir. As r
h garment in its own protective bag. On a long table, dozens of
would have cost a small fortune. She was beginning to und
e door off the main living area. "As for your personal belonging
. "No. Don't. There's
break. A complete e
. "Some things are necessary," he said.
etting the w
ur appointment at City
physical shock. Tomorrow? She had agreed
nt, Mark, and was issuing a series of quiet, rapid-fire instructions. As if
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