Katrina pov
I stood frozen in the middle of our sunlit kitchen, the device still clutched tightly in my hand, my fingers slick with cold sweat. *Max is dead,* Stacy’s mom had said, her voice so devoid of humanity it sounded mechanical. *He stabbed himself.*
My heart hammered against my ribs, a wild, erratic rhythm that made me feel entirely faint. It didn't make sense. Max was arrogant, a man who loved himself too much to ever turn a blade inward. It felt like a lie, a beautifully constructed cover-up to bury a bloody truth. I lowered the phone slowly, staring at the blank screen, my breathing ragged as I tried to calm the panic rising in my throat for the sake of the baby inside me.
*Buzz.*
The sudden vibration of the phone in my palm made me jump, a sharp gasp escaping my lips. I br
