I woke to the soft chirp of birds outside the window, but even their cheerful melodies couldn’t touch the anxiety twisting inside me. The events of the past few days clung to me like wet linen. George was still asleep beside me, his brow furrowed even in slumber, haunted by dreams he didn’t dare share.
I slipped out of bed and padded barefoot into the kitchen, needing to escape the weight of my thoughts. A cup of tea seemed like a small step toward normalcy, even though there was nothing normal about our lives anymore.
The red dress still hung in the back of my closet, untouched since the press conference. I had refused to wear it. Instead, I gave a bold speech in black, my words sharp, my message clearer than ever: I would not be silenced.
But Phil had made his point. He had Liana. And
