“You speak with great faith in him,” my mother finally said, the edges of her mouth twitching upward.“I do,” Adrien replied, sliding his hand behind my back with a warmth I hadn’t realized I needed. “Because I have seen him in rooms where men have begged. But he doesn’t fold. He leads.”My father g
Except for the way his hand gripped mine too tightly in the backseat.“Nervous?” I asked, voice low.His jaw twitched. “Your father once told me I was a danger to your future. Forgive me if I am not relaxed.”I looked over at him. “Adrien. You are the heir to the Magnus Empire. You manage the wealth
Kieran's POV: It was just past six when I barged into Adrien’s home office like I owned the place. Because, well, I sort of did. Or at least, I owned the right to interrupt whenever I damn well pleased.He was sitting at his desk, sleeves rolled up, tie loosened, eyes glued to the screen in front o
I sat down. My legs felt numb. Adrien sat next to me but turned sideways, fully facing me.I stared ahead. At nothing. “He looked like a ghost,” I said quietly. “Thinner. Greyer. But still him. Still that same smirk.”Adrien didn’t speak, just waited.“I told him what he did to us,” I continued. “I
Bernard stared at me, silent now.“You buried him before he ever died.”He said nothing. But I could see something flicker behind his eyes, was it guilt? Remorse? Or just the recognition that I had finally seen the full scope of his rot?“You were there the day we found him,” I said. “You hugged me.
Kieran's POV:Inside the visitation room, Bernard sat behind the glass, shackled. He looked smaller now. He used to wear those perfectly tailored suits but now he was dressed into an extremely wrinkled prison uniform that was hanging loose on his frame. His cheeks were hollow, his eyes sunken. But t