Amelia
The sun hadn’t risen yet, but the sky was beginning to blush gray when I slipped out the side entrance of Richard’s estate. My footsteps were light, every breath caught tight in my throat. I stuck close to the stone wall that lined the outer courtyard, ducking beneath windows, moving through shadows like I belonged to them. My shoes dangled from one hand, my other fisting the sleeves of the jacket I’d pulled on in a hurry, his jacket. Too long, too big, too unmistakably his. It smelled like him. Cedar, smoke, and power. The scent settled into me like a second skin.
I avoided the main hallway, ducked through the laundry corridor, and crept out the back garage just as I heard voices near the kitchen. My heart pounded against my ribs as I slipped through the perimeter gate and onto t
