Chapter 72: The Price of TruthEmma’s contact from the New York Times arrives the next afternoon—punctual, polished, and alert in that way people are when they’ve seen more than they let on. Nora Stein. Late thirties, sharp cheekbones, blunt-cut hair tucked behind one ear, and eyes that miss nothing
Chapter 71: Echoes in the StaticI don’t go home right away.Instead, I drive. Past the city limits. Past the lights. Past where the sky still remembers how to be dark.There’s an old overlook above the river—abandoned, quiet, forgotten. A place I used to come to think before my life became a labyri
Chapter 70: WhistleblowerThe lawyer Emma finds is a woman named Julia Ramirez. Former federal prosecutor. Fierce reputation. Zero tolerance for corporate bullshit.We meet in a modest office downtown, the kind with old wooden filing cabinets and a chipped mug that says “Justice Is a Full-Time Job.”
Chapter 69: Safe DepositThe next morning dawns gray and still, the kind of day that feels suspended between two storms. I dress slowly, favoring my still-healing side, and glance at myself in the mirror. There’s a hollowness under my eyes I don’t try to conceal. Pretending isn’t part of the plan an
Chapter 68: Unearthed TruthsThree days later, I'm discharged from the hospital. The media frenzy has only intensified, with reporters camped outside despite hospital security's best efforts. My father has arranged for a private exit through the service entrance, where Emma waits with her car."Read
Chapter 67: Shattered FoundationsSleep doesn't come, despite my mother's adjustments to my medication. My mind races through fragments of memory, trying to assemble them into something coherent. The beeping of the heart monitor becomes a metronome for my spiraling thoughts.When dawn finally breaks
Chapter 66: Hidden AgendasThe room temperature seems to drop ten degrees with James's pronouncement. Marcus steps forward, positioning himself between his brother and my hospital bed."This isn't the time or place, James," he says, his voice low and dangerous.Detective Powell intervenes smoothly.
Chapter 65: AftershocksKatherine clings to me, her small body trembling with emotion. I breathe in her familiar scent—vanilla shampoo and that indescribable essence that is uniquely hers. For eight days, she must have wondered if her mother would ever wake up. The thought makes me hold her tighter.
Chapter 64: AwakeningThe steady beeping of medical equipment pulls me from darkness. My eyelids feel impossibly heavy, but I force them open, blinking against harsh fluorescent light. A hospital room materializes around me—sterile white walls, monitoring equipment, the sharp smell of antiseptic."S