The penthouse living room on Fifth Avenue was shrouded in an eerie, oppressive silence. Outside, the gray morning light pressed against the floor-to-ceiling glass, but inside, no one had bothered to turn on the lamps. Four-year-old Aiden sat on the edge of the large cashmere sofa, his small feet dangling inches above the dark hardwood floor. He was clutching his small wooden toy truck, his eyes heavy with sleep, but he refused to lie down. Every few minutes, his tiny head would snap toward the private elevator doors, searching for the familiar sound of his mother’s heels or his father’s heavy footsteps. "Grandma?" Aiden murmured softly, his voice small and trembling in the vast, quiet room. He looked up at Victoria Sterling, who sat beside him. Victoria, Adrian’s mother, looked immaculate on the surface, dressed in a simple dress , her silver-ingoted hair pulled into a twist. But her hands, as she smoothed down the front of Aiden's sweater, were cold. Her face was pale, lined with
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