65

I hold the phone up, so she can see the image. When her brain processes, she reels away in shock.

“This is what happens when you think love is real. People die. For some idiotic reason, you agreed to marry this fool. And he took that weakness for himself. Your fiancé wanted money more than he wanted a wife. When he drugged you and sold you to me, I thought it was enough to cover a percentage of his debt. This is what happened when he pushed for more, trying to see how much he could weasel out of me.” I close the phone and toss it on my desk. “Also, I didn’t like his face. Don’t mistake me for a kind man. I’m not. You’re here to make me money, and if you can’t do that, you’re expendable. Do you understand?” I put more bite in my tone than usual, for both our benefits.

When she nods, I turn to the tray and what is left of my breakfast. “Get the fuck out until I come find you tonight.”

She doesn’t leave right away, and I shovel some eggs into my mouth, pretending she doesn’t exist or tha