Adam threw his arm across his face in an act of self-preservation. Cool liquid splashed his cheek, his chin, and his chest. He dropped his arm in time to see the defendant tackled to the ground, kicking and screaming. “You love only yourself. See if you can love a real beast.”
And the pain began. In seconds, Adam was gasping for air as acid ate away at his flesh. His mind was too sharp not to note the horrifying experience and log the centimeters of skin as they shrank away.
Uncle Philip appeared. He yelled for someone to call 911 and stripped Adam’s smoking coat off his body. He reached for the front of his shirt, but Adam stopped him—the acid had already gotten through.
“Don’t talk, my boy.” Philip’s voice was fatherly, caring, and full of panic.
Adam clenched his jaw shut. Strangely enough, he thought of the woman in the lobby. Of her ivory-colored skin, the perfection of her full lips. How blissful her life must be right now, in the arms of the man she loved. Hers was the image that he held on to as he sank into agony.
Chapter Four
Bella
Bella scanned the dark interior of Hattie’s Hat, restaurant extraordinaire. A hang-out for local up-and-coming lawyers as well as the college crowd; the feeling in the air was one of power mixed with ambition. On the east wall was an old-fashioned bar full of scrollwork that would be as welcome on a pirate ship as in an English tavern. A picture of a mermaid hung above an advertisement for a Halloween carnival that had already happened. The smell of steak and sweet potatoes filled the air, making Bella’s stomach growl. She placed a hand over it to muffle the noise, promising to order something real before she devoured a dessert with the rest of the table.
Bawdy laughter came from the other side of a wood partition. Charles’s guffaw was easy enough to make out above the rest, and she headed that direction, waving off a server dressed in all black who asked with his eyes if she needed help.
Bella rounded the partition, and the laughter stopped as eight sets of eyes landed on her. She could care less about the ones in the sharp suits or the woman with her hair in a twist. It was Charles’s coal-black eyes, which had looked at her with such fondness and were now filled with horror, which caused her feet to staple themselves to the carpet.
“Are you lost, young lady?” asked the French twist woman, her eyes wide with innocence while her tone dripped with derision. She had harsh frown lines around her mouth—a hostile resting face if ever there was one. Beside her were three men in gray suits, none of them old enough to be the founders of the well-known firm of Wolfe, Wolfe & Wolfe.
Bella’s first instinct was to glance down at her knee-length sunny dress and make sure she hadn’t accidentally tucked the hem into her undies. Women who were all put together and followed the latest makeup rules always made her feel like she was … odd. She could never get the contouring thing down just right and ended up looking like she’d swiped dirt across her cheeks.
Her second instinct was to hold her head high. She was dressed for a wedding,herwedding, and the groom should be introducing her instead of slouching behind the table. She put on a polite smile. “I’m here to see Charles.” She crooked her finger at him. “I’ll just need a moment.”
With his face the color of dying roses, Charles made all sorts of excuses, took her by the arm, and manhandled her around the partition. “What are you thinking showing up here, dressed like you’re headed to the beach? I want these people to take me seriously.”
Bella placed her hand on his chest. “I came to congratulate you. Your new job is a big deal, and I wanted you to know I support you … even though youmissed our wedding.” She managed to keep her smile in place.
Charles ran his hand through his jet-black hair. “Look, I’m sorry about the wedding, but it couldn’t be helped.”
“I understand.” At least, she wanted to. The thing that came to mind as she stood there, watching Charles look over his shoulder to make sure they weren’t seen or heard by his new employers, was that she would give up their wedding date for him, but he wouldn’t have done the same for her.
Countless small letdowns added up to an understanding she should have come to months ago. With slow movements, she removed the tiny diamond ring from her finger. When Charles had given it to her, she’d thought it sweet—they were starving students, after all. But now, she saw that it was the least he could have done. And that was all he ever did for her. The very least.
She deserved more. She deserved to chase her dream, whatever that was. With a growing desire to be more than a stool to raise Charles higher, came clarity. She’d thrown herself into another person’s dream and had let herself become a shadow. That just wouldn’t do. She was not a shadow. She was a person with needs and wants and desires and a truckload of self-respect. Where that self-respect had gone off to, she didn’t know. But it was time to call it back. She picked up his hand, set the ring inside, and closed his fist for him.
“What are you doing?” His thick eyebrows bunched together. For him, this probably was a shock.
“I’m giving you freedom to chase your dream.”
The relief in Charles’s face displaced any doubt she may have had about breaking ties. “Thanks, Bella. You’re more than I deserve.”
Though his tone was trite, she had to agree. With a flounce of her skirts, she turned her back on Charles and walked right out the door without feeling the need to look back. Oh, part of her knew she should be devastated that her engagement had come to an end today because of agoodbyeinstead of anI do. But then there was this huge weight lifted from her shoulders that left her bouncing in her heels.
A cold wind grabbed her cheeks like a wake-up call that also blew away the happy feeling that had come with taking off her ring. She wrapped her coat tightly around her thin body. The light rail station wasn’t far away and seemed like the type of place a woman could contemplate the direction of her life. She pressed forward, hunching into the wind and trying not to think about how alone she really was in this world. Charles had been her world for so long that, besides her father, she didn’t have anyone.
Her phone rang and she ducked into a purple doorway to get out of the weather, which was quickly turning nasty. Leo’s number appeared on her screen. Her father’s secretary was a family friend—she could count him in her small circle—and she instantly felt guilty for not remembering him from the start. “Hi, Leo.”
“Bella?” His normally deep and calming voice was rushed. “Bella, you need to get down to Swedish Medical. They want to take your dad in for surgery.”
“Surgery?” Bella jumped from the protection of the doorway and into the growing storm. “I just saw him yesterday and he was fine.” She’d gone up to The Cove to see the finished second security base. Her father was so proud of the work he did for Adam Moreau. Beating out the larger firms in the city had been quite the feather in his cap, and he’d poured himself into the legalities of rezoning the land, acquiring permits, and overseeing the general contractors who built the mansions for their billionaire clients. The estate was something out of a storybook with the lighthouse on the coastline, the castle perched on the cliffs, and the reception hall and dock up at the lake. They’d explored it all from the comforts of a Harley Davidson golf cart courtesy of Adam Moreau, whom she’d never met in person and hoped never to meet in the courtroom.
“He’s not fine. His heart … I don’t know. They won’t really tell me anything. He was complaining about being tired and his heart racing at the same time, and then he just collapsed. You’ve got to get here; you’re the only family he has.”
“I’m on Broadway.” She broke into a run, dodging a couple walking their chocolate lab. “I can be there in ten minutes.” Her feet complained about the abuse they took as she charged forward in three-inch heels. She ignored them and ran with all her heart, her jacket flapping out to the sides and dead leaves crackling as they scraped past her face. The clouds released their burden with angry abandon, and she was soon soaked through.
She ran to the emergency entrance and fought to get the doors opened. Once inside, she followed the signs, gasping for breath and holding the pinch in her side.
