“Back off. Fall in line. Stop being a problem.” He shrugs. “Take your pick.”
I think about my father's threats. My mother's maneuvering. The board meetings, the proxy votes, the endless war for control of an empire I never wanted.
“I want out,” I say quietly. “I'm done with all of it.”
“You think wanting out will stop this?” Ethan shakes his head. “Kai, you know better than that.”
“Then what's the play?”
“We find out who's behind this,” Logan says. “We trace the fixer, trace the money, trace whoever's pulling Dylan's strings. Then we handle it.”
“And in the meantime?”
“In the meantime, you heal. You let us do our job. And for god’s sake, tell Sin… Emma, the truth before someone else does it for you.”
We sit in silence. The city hums beyond the windows, indifferent to the weight of what we're discussing.
The afternoon fades. Logan and Ethan leave with promises to check in tomorrow. The apartment goes quiet.
I'm alone with the silence and the view and the growing certainty that I'm running out of time.
The elevator chimes. Emma steps out, bag over her shoulder, hair escaping its clip. She looks tired but lights up when she sees me.
“Hey.” She drops her bag on the chair, kicks off her heels with a sigh. “How was your day?”
Terrifying. Frustrating. Full of shadows I can't name and threats I can't trace.
“Better now,” I say.
She smiles, crosses to where I'm sitting. Her hand finds my shoulder, squeezes.
“You're tense.”
“Long day.”
“Want to talk about it?”
I should. I should tell her everything. About the investigation, about James, about the name I was born with and the legacy I can't escape.
Instead, I pull her closer. She comes easily, settles against my side, head finding my shoulder. She fits perfectly.
“Not tonight,” I say. “Tonight I just want this.”
She doesn't push. Lets the silence hold us.
I breathe her in. Citrus and something floral. Home.
Tomorrow, I tell myself. I'll tell her tomorrow.
Even as I think it, I know I'm lying.
CHAPTER 34
THE ROOTS
EMMA
I'm sketchingMarie's poster when Tank knocks on the terrace door.
