14

Later, I gradually heard bits and pieces of news about Marcus.

The first piece of information came from my former colleague at the pack clinic. She told me Marcus had been able to get out of prison a year early, but at a devastating cost.

His mother had sold their family home—the same house where I'd spent countless evenings having dinner with them, thinking I was part of the family. She'd emptied every savings account, cashed out all their investments, and even sold her late husband's war medals to scrape together the compensation money.

"She looked like she'd aged twenty years overnight," my colleague whispered. "When she came to handle the paperwork, her hands were shaking so badly she could barely sign her name."

They were completely bankrupt.

But Marcus's troubles had only just begun.

After being thrown out by Dominic's guards that day, Marcus hadn't learned his lesson. My security team later told me he'd tried to force his way back into the venue again, screaming my name like a m