Chapter 1
“You hid the bruises because you knew exactly who would see them.”
Ryan stopped moving.
Linda did too.
Emily stood behind me with both hands over her stomach.
Seven months pregnant.
My daughter.
Twenty-five years old.
And when I looked at her face, I did not see surprise that I had discovered something.
I saw relief.
That was worse.
“How long?”
She shook her head.
Not refusing.
Unable.
Ryan spoke instead.
“She falls.”
I turned toward him.
“I wasn’t asking you.”
Silence.
I looked at Emily again.
“Sweetheart.”
Her mouth trembled.
“Since Christmas.”
Four months.
The baby shower room vanished around me.
Guests.
Flowers.
Gifts.
None of it mattered.
Linda immediately stepped forward.
“She’s emotional. Pregnancy—”
“Stop.”
My voice stayed low.
That frightened her more than shouting.
Emily gripped my sleeve.
“Dad, please.”
“I’m here.”
“No.”
She swallowed.
“Please don’t start anything.”
That sentence hit harder than the bruises.
She was frightened of Ryan.
But she was also frightened of what I might do after learning the truth.
I had spent my entire life making sure enemies knew exactly what happened when they touched a Moretti.
Apparently my daughter knew too well.
“I won’t do anything you don’t want.”
Her eyes lifted.
She needed to hear that.
Ryan laughed bitterly.
“Really?”
I looked at him.
He had mistaken restraint for weakness.
Typical.
Emily said:
“I want to go home.”
My house.
Not hers.
Not his.
Home.
I nodded.
“Then we’re leaving.”
Linda moved again.
“The shower—”
I looked around the room.
A decorated cradle.
Champagne.
Pink and cream flowers.
A cake taller than my granddaughter would probably be.
A celebration built around a woman who had spent months making sure nobody saw her arms.
“The shower is over.”
Then Emily whispered:
“My bag.”
Ryan’s face changed.
Small.
Immediate.
I noticed.
“What bag?”
She looked toward the upstairs hallway.
“A blue overnight bag.”
Linda said:
“There isn’t one.”
Emily closed her eyes.
There.
Another lie.
I turned to my bodyguards.
“Find it.”
Ryan stepped forward.
“No one goes through my house.”
I met his eyes.
May you like
“My daughter already asked to leave it.”
That was the only permission I needed.
