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Chapter 42 – A Wolf in Their Garden

Author: Ij Gabriel
last update Last Updated: 2025-06-08 04:51:15

Amelia's Pov

The gallery was suffocating.

Not in the way of a huge space under a sky that reached towards the heavens, but in the peculiar way that rooms full of poised smiles and inquiring eyes can. Every glance was a searching inspection; each word uttered was some amazing discovery.

I was supposed to be here tonight, but he'd failed to turn up yet again. And here I was, underneath the steel-and-glass chandelier, in a soft graphite-colored dress that hugged my waist and flowed like liquid with each smooth move. It was tasteful, classy, and carefully selected to belie the fact that any effort whatsoever had been involved. My heels added to my height, my hair was tidily brushed back, my makeup was perfect—and none of it provided any feeling of security.

I was exposed.

I stood next to one of Ethan's sculptures—a metal phoenix in flight, hovering in a blaze of orange—mimicking the examination of its wing contours before I felt her before I saw her. Her heels tapped out the deliberate
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