Chapter 1 1

The champagne was cold, but the sweat trickling down Christopher Haney's spine was hot.

He stood exactly half a step behind Hillary Mitchell, his posture slumped just enough to look submissive, but not enough to look like a hunchback. It was a calculated angle. Everything about Christopher was calculated.

The Great Hall of the Metropolitan Museum of Art was a cavern of echoes and diamonds. The air smelled of expensive perfume, old stone, and the specific, metallic scent of judgment. Christopher held Hillary's clutch-a Judith Leiber crystal-encrusted thing that cost more than his foster mother's house-in both hands, like a sacred offering.

He felt the eyes on him.

They were heavy, sticky gazes from the Manhattan elite. He didn't need to look up to know what they were thinking. There's the parasite. The trophy husband. The man who married a trust fund.

Christopher let his shoulders round forward. He offered a weak, apologetic smile to a passing waiter. This was part of the package. The contract required him to be the perfect foil to Hillary's ice-queen dominance. If she was the diamond, he was the velvet cushion-dull, soft, and beneath her.

"Stop fidgeting," Hillary hissed. She didn't turn her head. Her smile remained fixed for the flashing cameras of the paparazzi line, but her voice was a razor blade.

"Sorry, darling," Christopher mumbled, pitching his voice to sound pathetic. "My feet hurt."

Hillary let out a sharp breath through her nose. "You're embarrassing me. Stand up straight."

Before Christopher could adjust his stance, a shadow fell over them. A heavy hand clapped onto Christopher's shoulder, jarring his bones.

"Well, if it isn't the happy couple."

Calhoun Steele. Hillary's ex-fiancé, and a man who wore his arrogance like a second skin. He was wearing a tuxedo that fit too well, smelling of scotch and aggressive musk.

Christopher flinched. He made sure the flinch was visible.

"Calhoun," Hillary said, her tone frosty. "You're drunk."

"And you're married to a golden retriever," Calhoun laughed. He leaned in, his weight pushing Christopher off balance. Calhoun held a flute of champagne in his other hand. With a tilt of his wrist that was too precise to be an accident, the amber liquid sloshed over the rim.

It splashed onto Christopher's lapel. The cheap rental fabric soaked it up instantly.

"Oops," Calhoun grinned, his teeth white and predatory. "My bad, Chris. Send me the bill for the dry cleaning. Oh, wait-Hillary pays your bills, doesn't she?"

The circle of socialites around them tittered. It was a cruel, high-pitched sound.

Christopher looked down at the stain. It was spreading, dark and wet against the black. He felt the cold liquid seep through to his shirt, touching his skin.

He didn't get angry. He didn't shove Calhoun.

He looked up, widening his eyes, letting his lower lip tremble just a fraction. "It's... it's okay, Mr. Steele. Accidents happen."

He reached for a napkin from a passing tray, his hands shaking. He dabbed at the stain frantically, looking like a servant terrified of a stain.

Hillary made a sound of pure disgust. She wasn't looking at Calhoun with anger; she was looking at Christopher with loathing. She hated weakness. And Christopher was giving her a masterclass in it.

"Go to the restroom," she ordered, her voice low and venomous. "Clean yourself up. You look pathetic."

"Yes. Yes, of course. I'm sorry, Hillary."

Christopher bowed his head, backing away. He nearly tripped over his own feet, eliciting another round of laughter from Calhoun's group.

He walked away, keeping his head down, his shoulders hunched. He navigated the sea of silk gowns and tuxedos, apologizing to anyone he brushed against.

He pushed open the heavy oak door of the men's restroom. It was empty.

Christopher checked the stalls. Empty.

He walked to the furthest sink and turned on the faucet. The water ran cold. He stared at his reflection in the mirror. The pathetic, terrified look in his eyes vanished. The slump in his shoulders corrected itself with a snap. His spine straightened.

He looked at the digital watch on his wrist. It was a Casio, black rubber, jarringly out of place with the tuxedo.

11:55 PM.

Five minutes.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, folded packet of wet wipes. He scrubbed the champagne stain with efficient, brutal strokes. He didn't care about the fabric; he just wanted the smell of Calhoun off him.

He tossed the wipe into the trash. His face was blank. Not angry. Not sad. Just empty.

Four minutes.

He adjusted his cuffs. He ran a hand through his hair, messing up the carefully gelled style Hillary preferred.

Three minutes.

He unlocked the restroom door and stepped back out into the gala. The noise hit him like a physical wave. He scanned the room. Hillary was standing near the Temple of Dendur, speaking with Calhoun. Calhoun's hand was resting on the small of her back.

Hillary wasn't pushing him away.

Two minutes.

Christopher walked toward them. He didn't weave through the crowd this time. He cut a straight line. His stride was longer. His chin was up.

Hillary sensed him coming. She turned, her eyebrows knitting together, ready to scold him for taking too long.

"Christopher, where have you-"

She stopped.

Christopher stopped three feet away from her. He didn't look at her face. He looked at the space between her eyes.

His watch vibrated against his wrist bone. A single, short buzz.

00:00 AM.

May 2nd.

The Non-Disclosure Agreement, specifically Clause 4.2 regarding "Public Maintenance of Marital Image," had just expired.

Christopher didn't speak. He raised his left hand.

With his right hand, he gripped the platinum wedding band on his ring finger. It was tight. He twisted it. The skin bunched and turned white, then red.

He pulled.

The ring slid off.

The movement caught the light. Hillary's eyes widened. Calhoun's smirk faltered.

A waiter walked by with a tray of empty glasses. Christopher didn't look at the waiter. He simply extended his hand and dropped the ring.

Clink.

The sound was sharp, high-pitched, and impossible to ignore. It hit the base of a crystal flute and settled there, a piece of metal among the dregs of expensive wine.

Christopher lowered his hand. He looked at Hillary. For the first time in two years, he really looked at her.

"Goodbye, Hillary."

His voice was different. It was an octave lower, stripped of the nasal whine he had cultivated. It was smooth, dark, and indifferent.

He turned his back on her.

"Christopher?" Hillary's voice cracked. It wasn't a command. It was a question.

He kept walking.

"Christopher!" She shouted his name. Heads turned. The murmur of the crowd died down.

A security guard near the entrance, a man Christopher knew named Gary, stepped forward to intercept him. "Mr. Haney, Mrs. Mitchell is calling you."

Christopher didn't slow down. He knew Gary had a bad left knee from college football. He feinted right, then slipped past Gary's left side before the big man could pivot.

He pushed the heavy brass doors of the museum open.

The night air of New York City rushed into his lungs. It tasted of exhaust and freedom.

He walked down the iconic steps of the Met. He reached up and undid his bowtie. He pulled the strip of silk from his collar and dropped it into a wire trash can without breaking his stride.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone-the iPhone 14 Pro Hillary had bought him. He pressed the power button and held it until the screen went black. Then, he used his thumbnail to pop the SIM card tray. He snapped the tiny chip in half and flicked the pieces into the gutter.

He reached into his other pocket and pulled out a burner flip phone.

He didn't look back at the museum. He didn't look back at the millions of dollars, the caviar, or the woman who technically still owned him on paper.

He merged into the shadows of Fifth Avenue, just another dark figure in the city that never sleeps.