The guards moved to stop me almost immediately.
But Audrey spoke before they could.
"Let her through."
They were the first words she'd spoken in public since her release.
The entire room went quiet.
I walked onto the stage, one step at a time, and placed the red pen in her hand. There was no warmth in her eyes, no trace of happiness at seeing me again. Only the weary look of someone who had been waiting far too long for this moment.
I wrapped my arms around her and leaned close to her ear.
Then I whispered the same five words I'd said at her wedding.
Her body stiffened. Slowly, the tension left her.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Below the stage, Vivian lunged at us like a madwoman.
Audrey snatched up the silver knife meant for the anniversary cake and drove it straight into her mo
