e a monument to the lies it housed. Chloe drove past the main gate, parking her car
that place home. Now, she saw i
manicured lawns. An
uine sound she hadn't heard in years. Kasey Webster was beside him, radiant and glowing, her hand resting poss
e
ppy, complete family, basking in the la
ges of grief were burned away by the white-hot flame of rag
service entrance. She slipped into the house through the kitchen, her movements quiet a
Francisco. The scent of his cologne hung in the air, a clo
igner shoes she rarely wore, was a small, discreet safe set into
e phone and a single manila folder bea
rampant on a field of blue. A symbol
ensingtons. When they learned of her existence, they reached out and offered to take her back. But there was a price. The family's rul
She had chosen her husband.
no
s. How could she be foolish enoug
hone, her hand steady. The trem
from memory. It connec
ce answered. "Chloe.
er. "Colter," she said, her own voice r
acceptance. "Understood. The arrangement with the Beaumo
evoid of any hesitation. "Send me D
r said. "Welcome b
profound it made her knees weak. But beneath the
his study across the hall. It was low, hushed, but the door was s
kes her 'vitamin' tonight," he was say
ta
ive years, just before bed, Francisco would bring her a glass of warm milk and a s
tamin. It was
retch. They hadn't just denied her a marriage; they had denied her the poss
tion that was clearly feigned for his lover's benefit. "Once the time is right, I
e door, to scream, to claw at his lying face was overwhelming. But she fohe stumbled into the en-suite bathroom and leaned over the toilet, shoving two fingers down he
f sorrow for a lost love, but tears of rage for her own
She looked up, meeting her own eyes in the mirror. The woman staring back was
sage. It was Damon Beaumont
she typed a message, her thum
nsington. Regarding the proposa
und sense of severance. The old Chloe, the
re of the doting husband, his smile warm, his eyes full of feigned
ed, his voice smooth as silk
She gave him a smile, brighter and warmer than any she had given
inst his, and popped it into her mouth. She took a long d
d tucked safely under her tongue, was spat discreetly into her hand. The rest o
the empty glass on her nightstand and his should
as w
ok the small white pill from her jewelry box. She stared at it
the bathroom and flus
t, watching it swirl
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