Madam Estelle’s POV
I was anxious to get rid of Lila which was why I acted too quickly. Perhaps too quickly.
And recklessly.
Leo.
The boy was leverage. The perfect pressure point. If Alina was getting too close to the truth, what better way to distract her than to threaten what she loved most?
“You’re sure about this?” Lila had asked when I’d outlined the kidnapping plan.
“This is extreme, even for us.”
“Do you have a better idea?”
She hadn’t. Neither did I, truthfully. But I’d been desperate, backed into a corner by my own past schemes.
So I’d arranged it. Found the men. Paid them more than they deserved. Given them explicit instructions about when and where to take the boy.
Landi was glad to help me with a place to hide the boy, somewhere that couldn’t be track to us.
It sh
