The world had tilted on its axis. The air I was breathing felt thin, stolen. The revelation from the street corner encounter with Damian was replayed in my mind in an endless, horrifying loop: the scent, the memory, the sudden, gut-wrenching connection. It wasn't a suspicion; it was a certainty that resonated deep in my bones, a primal recognition of a predator I had met before.
My hands were still trembling when I arrived back at the penthouse. I had to force myself to put on the mask of the fragile, crumbling wife. I walked past the war room, ignoring the concerned glance from Eleanor, and went straight to the nursery. I lifted sleeping Eddie from his crib, holding his warm, tiny body against my chest. He was my anchor. He was the reason I had to fight, the reason I couldn't shatter int
