James arrived at Sarah’s mansion faster than he expected, breath unsteady, pulse racing with a strange blend of fear and hope.
She had called him barely an hour ago, saying, “We need to talk. Come after work.” But he didn’t wait. He couldn’t.
Something in her tone refused to leave his mind.
As he parked outside the gate, part of him whispered the foolish hope he had refused to kill—maybe tonight Sarah would finally forgive him, maybe she was ready to open the door he had destroyed with his own hands. He shook the thought away, but it clung stubbornly.
He had branched at Melissa’s school on his way, picking her up when he realized he wanted her there too. If something good was going to come out of this meeting, he wanted Melissa to witness it.
Inside the living room, the moment Melis
