The morning after the hot tragedy, which made everyone gasp, the crisp air outside Valerie Blackstone’s law firm was heavy with the buzz of a media storm. News outlets crowded the sidewalks, cameras clicking and microphones thrust into the faces of passersby, hoping to catch a glimpse of something—anything—that might explain the shocking death that had unfolded just hours earlier.
The press had gathered in droves, their voices rising in a chaotic hum that filled the otherwise still morning. Valerie stood at the top of the stairs, watching the frenzy below her, the cold marble beneath her feet grounding her, even as everything inside her felt... suspended.
She had never been a stranger to attention,after all, she had built her career by commanding it. But this was different. This wasn’t a
