Semua Bab SHATTERRED VOWS, STOLEN SHADOWS: Bab 51 - Bab 54

Clara's POV The autumn wind carried a sharp, biting chill that cut straight through the weave of my wool coat, but the frost settling deep in my chest had nothing to do with October. For the past three blocks, a heavy, suffocating sensation had clung to my spine. Every time the heel of my boot struck the pavement, an electric current of warning skittered across my skin. I kept glancing over my shoulder, but the sidewalk behind us was just a mundane tapestry of commuters buried in scarves, turning pages of newspapers, or rushing home to dinner. The street looked ordinary. Safe.Yet the phantom weight remained.I tightened my grip on the handle of the stroller, my knuckles turning stark white against the dark rubber. Up ahead, three-year-old Leo remained blissfully oblivious to the quiet panic clawing at my throat. He babbled softly in his own toddler language, kick-kicking his small, boot-clad feet in rhythm with the wheels as he reached out to snatch at a stray golden leaf skittering

Julian's POV The black bulletproof Maybach hadn't even come to a complete stop against the park curb before I shoved the rear door open.Every muscle in my body was coiled impossibly tight, humming with a lethal frequency that threatened to tear me apart from the inside out. The moment my boots hit the damp gravel path, the ambient noise of the afternoon seemed to vanish, replaced by the heavy, suffocating pressure of my own unbridled fury.I saw Clara first.She was standing near the green bench, her face as drained of color as a sheet of winter snow. She was clutching Leo so tightly to her chest it was a miracle the boy could draw breath, her fingers dug deep into his small coat. Her eyes were wide, dilated, drowning in a mixture of deep shock and lingering trauma.And then my gaze shifted downward.Mark. Pinned flat against the dirt like a filthy parasite, writhing helplessly beneath the heavy boot of my lead operative, Miller.The mere sight of him anywhere near Clara anywhere ne