Leah laughed, bitter and fractured. “You think I don’t see the consequences? My daughter is under investigation. My husband is being questioned. Reporters are outside my gate every day. When I go out, I hear whispers.” Her expression twisted. “I don’t need sympathy. I need loyalty.”
“Loyalty and silence are not the same thing,” Eve said.
Leah’s hand tapped the desk, light, sharp. “You were supposed to be temporary.”
Eve blinked once. “I beg your pardon?”
“You were supposed to come and go,” Leah spat. “Marry Ryan, serve your purpose, leave when the problem was solved. We were going to clean up the mess, prevent a scandal, move on. And you left, good. Perfect. Quiet. We would have separated eventually.”
Something cold settled in Eve’s chest.
“Separated quietly,” she repeated. “Like I w
