One hundred and seventy

~~ Alex~~

Leaving Jay alone at home in that fragile, coma-ridden state tore me apart more than anything ever could. But after managing to get three hours of sleep, I felt a little lighter, a little less like I was living on borrowed strength.

Still, sitting across from him the man who’d made Jay’s childhood a quiet hell made my blood burn.

Richard Hale.

A man too proud to see the cracks in his own legacy, too blind to notice the pain he caused his children.

And now, he had the nerve to act clueless, pretending he didn’t understand why Jay was in a coma, why his family was crumbling, why everything around him reeked of consequence.

The anger in me was steady not explosive, but dangerous.

I leaned forward, elbows resting on my knees, eyes fixed on his face.

“Can you tell me something, sir?” I asked, my tone calm but sharp enough to cut. “Do you have any children before Jay and Lena?”

For a second, he didn’t answer. Just stared at me like I’d slapped him. He keeps going on with no way s