The summons arrived via courier — black envelope, heavy paper, no return address.
My townhouse. 8 PM. Come alone. —G
Elsa crumpled the note, her hands shaking. Three days since the revelation. Three days of avoiding Mark's calls, her mother's questions, the memory of Gideon's c**k buried inside her while his son begged for forgiveness downstairs.
She shouldn't go. Should burn the note, flee the city, disappear. Instead, she stood at his door at 7:58 PM, wearing a dress she'd chosen deliberately, armor against what she knew awaited her.
The townhouse was a monument to wealth — four stories, brick and iron, silence that pressed against her eardrums. A servant opened the door, led her to a study, and vanished.
Gideon stood by the fire, a whiskey in his hand, his posture relaxed and preda
