LOGINAutumn had returned late in the night, the front door clicking shut softly behind her as she stepped into the quiet apartment. The glow of the city skyline filtered through the blinds, casting long shadows across the living room. She moved slowly, her aching body protesting every step, and sat down heavily on the dining chair, staring directly at the precise mash of papers arranged in front of her on the tabletop by Anita.She rested her good arm on the wood, her eyes lowering to the bright screen of her laptop. She sat down staring at the unread message sitting at the top of her inbox. It was the application forms for the ministry competition, the exact career milestone, the very same opportunity she had been relentlessly pursuing for months to reach. It was now sitting right within her grasp, just a single click away.“But what good is it now?” her voice, even though soft and raspy from crying, rang out like an echo in the quiet living space.She leaned back against the hard chair,
“Eric, we need to talk,” she spoke again, calling out his name as she took another step further into the office, the door clicking shut behind her.“I don't have anything to talk to you about. If you are done with Finn, see yourself out,” he uttered coldly at her.; his eyes never strayed for a second from the document resting in his hand, his pen poised over the page.“Yes, we do! We need to talk about the custody arrangements,” she said, planting her feet firmly on the carpet and standing her ground against his overwhelming presence. “I cannot keep on coming here whenever you feel like it, whenever you decide to call me! Eric, I am not your maid. He is your son as well.”“So what you are saying is your nonexistent job is more important than your own son?”He finally fixed his gaze on her, dropping the document in his hand onto the desk with a thud. His eyes locked onto hers with an intensity.“I never said that!” she hissed at him, her chest heaving as her fists clenched tightly at h
The taxi had stopped in front of the estate gates. Autumn diligently paid the driver, counting out the exact bills with her right hand, before exiting the vehicle into the damp afternoon air. Her mind was a chaotic mess over returning to this place so soon after leaving.Despite the fact that she wanted her son to be here in a secure environment, knowing how what she was doing was and the risk it posed to Finn's life, she couldn't bear being far from him;distant from him while threats lurked around them.She lifted her chin, taking an intake of breath, and walked in through the tall iron gates with her head held high, even though her heart and mind were both restless and in deep turmoil with each other. Every step across the gravel driveway felt like walking into a trap, but she kept her pace steady.As she crossed the threshold into the grand foyer, a few maids rushed past her in a flurry, their faces pale with anxiety. ‘What was that about?’ she hummed softly to herself in thought,
Present day.Autumn sat down calmly at the dining table, her good hand resting flat on her forehead as she massaged her temples, trying to push a forthcoming headache away. For the last few days, she had spent almost every single waking moment sitting in front of the screen, painstakingly redoing everything she had remembered, every single detail, every hidden account number, and every ledger entry she had lost when her tablet shattered.A few figures she hadn’t been able to recall perfectly. She was still human, after all, but the vast majority of the data she had remembered with clarity. She only had a small problem remaining: all she needed to do now was cross-check her written notes against the files she had gotten them from. But the second question stared right in the face: ‘how’ Was she going to cross-check them?She doubted Nigel would hand her his computer again to let her copy the files he held on Miranda's will. Trying to cross-check her notes with his files without authoriz
A few days ago.As soon as the finalized divorce certificate was placed in his hand, Eric had stormed out of her hospital room without a single backward glance, his heavy footsteps echoing furiously down the quiet corridor with Gabriel trailing closely behind him.“Is the plane ready for New York?” Eric asked, his voice sharp and clipping through the cold hallway air.“Yes, sir,” came Gabriel's curt reply, keeping pace beside him.Gabriel held his tongue, but his mind was racing. He had vividly seen Eric’s utterly distraught state when he first landed at Heathrow, thinking something terrible had happened to her. So it came as a profound shock to see Eric act with such coldness toward Autumn in that room even going as far as to personally initiate the divorce proceedings and fast-track them within twenty-four hours. Gabriel had honestly thought his boss loved her above everything else. He had seen the terrifying madness that took over Eric when she had left without a word five years ag
The bedroom remained pitch-black and silent, except for a thin sliver of light that cut through the cracked doorway, cutting across the floorboards like a blade.Autumn lay motionless on the mattress. Her limbs felt heavy, anchored by a physical tiredness, but her eyes were wide awake and unblinking in the dark. She stared fixedly at the window pane, her gaze never straying from the glass. Images from her life stretching from her earliest childhood memories back home, through her rise, to this exact moment flashed behind her eyes in a rapid montage. The faint hum of the city outside filtered through the glass, distant car horns and the occasional siren blending into a drone.Dark circles marred the skin underneath her eyes, a telltale sign of both her total lack of sleep and the marrow-deep exhaustion of the past forty-eight hours. Her good hand rested on her stomach, fingers occasionally pressing against the tender scar there as if to hold herself together.“I should probably get out
Eric’s POV"—so that's why it's important I go do this alone," I said to Autumn. I didn't look at her as I spoke, focusing instead on the metal teeth of my suitcase as I pulled the zipper shut. The sound was loud in the quiet bedroom, echoing like a final decision."But still, I
Autumn POVI sat down on the sofa, staring at the TV. A broadcast of an interview was playing on the screen, the bright lights of the television reflecting in my eyes. The words being said echoed in the vast, space of the living room. It felt like the house was too big now, especially with the
We had finally returned home after spending three grueling days at the hospital. The sterile smell of antiseptic seemed to have seeped into my skin, and the constant beep of monitors still echoed in my ears. Finn was much better, his laughter returning as we walked through the front doors of the es
The ride back to the hotel was quiet, but the air was different. The tension had shifted from anger to something much more potent. When we stepped into the hotel room, the city lights of Milan were sparkling through the windows, but all I could see was Eric.He closed the door behind us, locking it







