LILY
Alice returned home that morning, hand in hand with her grandmother, the sound of tiny sneakers padding softly across the marble floor. Margaret opened the door before I could reach it, her expression carefully neutral, though I sensed the usual quiet tension she carried whenever anyone from Ace’s inner circle visited.
“Good morning, Lily,” Margaret said. “Alice is back with Mrs. Whitmore.”
I nodded, forcing a polite smile. “Thank you. I’ll take her from here.”
Mrs. Whitmore didn’t even glance at me. She simply handed Alice over and offered a curt, “She’s all yours,” before leaving, her heels clicking down the hall and away. Alice bounced toward me, chattering about her morning with her grandmother, completely oblivious to the subtle tension left in the air.
I knelt down, gatheri
