Elena's nightstand was empty.
The double peony that had stood there was withered.
Elena's half of the closet had been cleared out completely.
Every object in the room that belonged to Elena was gone.
Adrian stood alone in the stripped-bare room, looking utterly lost.
He hurried downstairs and questioned the housekeeper.
"Where did Elena go?"
The housekeeper answered carefully, "Ms. Parker flew home. I heard something happened to her family..."
Adrian laughed once. "What is she upset about now? Go check the garden. She's probably there."
The housekeeper lowered her head.
"She said the peonies had already bloomed and didn't need her anymore."
Adrian refused to believe it.
He crossed the covered walkway and hurried deeper into the garden, past neatly trimmed shrubs, the fountain,
