Under Contract

Chapter 27: Not taking it anymore

Anton Pov

There are moments in a man’s life when rage arrives so cleanly it feels like clarity.

Not noise. Not loss of control.

Precision.

I had been walking toward the refrigerator case with a bottle of mineral water already in mind and half my attention still on the meeting I was late for when I saw her.

At first it was only her face.

Melody.

Paler than usual. Tired in a way I disliked immediately. One hand braced against the shelving, coat buttoned high, head slightly bent as she studied rows of crackers and bottled water under fluorescent lights that made everything look cheap and unforgiving.

Then my gaze dropped.

And the world altered.

Not dramatically. The shelves did not shake. The floor did not move. The cashier kept talking to a man buying cigarettes. A refrigerator mot