Chapter 6 6

The silence in the room was deafening after the slap.

Dominic looked at his hand. It trembled slightly, not from fear, but from adrenaline.

Evelin stood with her chin raised, defiant, expecting him to apologize. Expecting him to crumble like he always did.

Dominic raised his hand.

For a split second, the air left the room. Evelin didn't flinch. She didn't step back. Instead, a twisted, predatory smile curled her lips.

"Do it," she whispered, her eyes gleaming with malice. "Hit me. Give me a reason to call the police right now. Give me a reason to have you thrown in a cell tonight."

Dominic's hand hovered in the air. His palm itched to strike her, to return the humiliation, to shatter that arrogant mask. But he saw the trap. He saw Miller standing just outside the study door, hand on his radio. If Dominic touched her, he lost everything. He would be the abuser. She would be the victim.

Slowly, painfully, Dominic lowered his hand. He clenched it into a fist at his side, his nails digging into his palms until they drew blood.

Evelin laughed. It was a cruel, victorious sound. "That's what I thought. You don't have the guts. You never did."

She stepped closer, sensing his defeat. "You are weak, Dominic. That's why I needed Hank. He takes what he wants. You just... wait for permission."

The words cut deeper than any slap. Dominic felt the last shred of his ego disintegrate. He wasn't leaving as a conqueror. He was leaving as a refugee.

He pushed her back gently but firmly, creating distance. "I'm not weak, Evelin. I'm just decent. And that's something you'll never understand."

"Decency doesn't pay the bills!" Evelin spat at him. Saliva landed on his lapel. "You are fired! I'll blacklist you! You'll never work in this city again! You'll starve!"

Dominic smiled bitterly. He wiped the spit off his jacket. "I'd rather starve than eat your leftovers."

The insult landed. Evelin turned a deep shade of crimson.

Dominic zipped up his suitcase. He picked it up.

"Keep the penthouse. Keep the money. I'm taking my freedom."

He walked to the door.

Evelin yelled after him, her voice cracking. "If you walk out that door, Dominic, I will ruin you! I will bury you!"

Dominic paused at the threshold. He didn't look back.

"You already did, Evelin. Years ago."

He walked out and slammed the front door.

He took the elevator down to the lobby. The doorman gave him a confused look, eyeing the small suitcase and the red mark on Dominic's face, but Dominic ignored him.

Outside, it was raining. A cliché, maybe, but the cold water felt like a cleanse. It washed away the scent of the penthouse.

He hailed a cab. The yellow car splashed through a puddle and screeched to a halt.

"Where to?" the driver asked.

Dominic hesitated. He had nowhere to go. No hotels-Evelin would track the credit card. No friends-they were all her friends.

Then he remembered. The studio apartment in Queens. Astoria. He had bought it right out of college and never sold it. He kept it as a storage unit for his old life.

"Queens. Astoria," Dominic said.

As the cab pulled away, the Manhattan skyline receding in the rain-streaked window, Dominic pulled out his phone.

He scrolled through his contacts. He stopped at a name he hadn't called in five years.

Jesenia Wiggins (Law School).

He pressed call.