Chapter 12

The next morning, the penthouse was suffocatingly bright, the storm having broken to reveal a harsh, unforgiving sunlight that illuminated every corner of our shared life. It was Wednesday. Seventy-two hours until my flight to Heathrow.

Usually, Julian was out the door by 7:30 AM, a wh

Chapter 13

The progress bar on my computer screen glowed a steady, clinical blue. *78% Complete.*

I sat at the expansive oak desk in my corner office at Thorne & Vance, watching years of my intellectual property, personal design iterations, and private correspondence vanish into the digital ether

Chapter 14

The dining table was set with a precision that bordered on theatrical. Julian had pulled out the heavy linen napkins we had received as an engagement gift but never used. Two tall, white taper candles flickered in the center of the table, casting dancing shadows against the floor-to-ceil