Chapter 2

The coffee in her mug was cold. June hadn't taken a sip. She sat in the sunroom, the morning light streaming through the glass walls, illuminating the dust motes dancing in the air.

She hadn't slept. Sleep felt like a luxury she could no longer afford, a surrender she wasn't willing to make. Instead, a strange, brittle clarity had settled over her. The shock had worn off, leaving behind a quiet, unshakeable resolve.

On the tablet in her lap, she scrolled through listings for one-bedroom apartments in the West Village. Small, anonymous places with fire escapes and a view of a brick wall. They looked like heaven.

Her phone buzzed on the glass table beside her, the sound jarring in the morning stillness. An unknown number. She hesitated, then answered, her voice a little rough.

"Hello?"

"Am I speaking with Mrs. June Perez?" a man's voice asked. It was smooth, professional.

"This is she."

"Mrs. Perez, my name is Julian Finch. I'm the manager at the Elysian Gallery in SoHo."

June's posture straightened. A knot of unease tightened in her stomach. "Yes?"

"I'm calling about the piece you reserved two weeks ago. Metamorphosis." Julian's voice was laced with an apology she could already feel coiling around her. "I'm afraid I have some unfortunate news."

The tablet slid from her lap, landing with a soft thud on the Persian rug. The world, which had felt so sharp and clear moments before, went fuzzy at the edges.

"What do you mean?" she asked, her voice cracking. "I paid the deposit. We have a signed pre-purchase agreement."

"I know, and I am terribly sorry for this. It's highly unusual," he said, his practiced regret doing nothing to soften the blow. "Another client came in this morning. They made an offer... a very substantial one. One the gallery owner felt we simply could not refuse. We are, of course, prepared to refund your deposit and pay the contractual penalty fee."

Her heart, which had felt like a cold, dead stone in her chest since last night, started to pound. A frantic, painful rhythm. That painting wasn't just a piece of art. It was an anchor to a life she thought she'd lost. It was a promise she had made to herself.

"Mr. Finch," she said, forcing her voice to remain steady, to betray none of the panic clawing at her throat. "The price is negotiable. I will match their offer. That painting... I have to have it."

There was a pause on the other end of the line. She could hear him take a deep breath. "Mrs. Perez, I'm afraid it's not that simple. The buyer is... a very important client. We can't afford to alienate them."

A chill snaked down her spine. There were only a handful of people in New York City who could make a top SoHo gallery break a contract with that level of impunity.

"Who is it?" she demanded, the question sharp.

Julian hesitated. "Our client list is confidential..."

"Who bought my painting, Julian?"

He sighed, a sound of defeat. "The buyer was Mr. Augustus Pruitt, of the Pruitt Group."

The name hit her like a lightning strike. It was so absurd, so cruelly perfect, that she almost laughed. A hysterical sound bubbled in her throat, and she had to bite her lip to keep it from escaping.

Of course.

It wasn't a coincidence. It was a cosmic joke at her expense. Augustus had no interest in art. He wouldn't know a Monet from a street-art stencil. He hadn't bought it for himself.

He'd bought it for Herlinda.

The numbness that had encased her since last night shattered, and in its place, a white-hot rage erupted. It surged through her veins, burning away the cold, the shock, the grief.

"Are they there now?" she asked, her voice dangerously calm.

"Yes, Mrs. Perez. They're just finalizing the paperwork."

"Don't sell it. I'm on my way."

She hung up before he could reply.

For a moment, she just stood there, her hands clenched into fists at her sides. He had taken her dignity. He had taken her hope. And now, he was taking the last piece of her past, the one thing that was truly, wholly hers, and he was going to hand it to another woman.

No. Not this time.

She flew up the stairs, her movements sharp and efficient. She pulled on a pair of jeans and a simple black cashmere sweater, shoving her feet into leather boots. She grabbed her purse and the keys to her car.

The housekeeper, Maeve, saw her rushing toward the garage. "Mrs. Perez, shall I have the driver bring the car around?"

"No, Maeve. I'll drive myself." Her eyes were blazing with a fire Maeve had never seen before.

She didn't take the black Bentley Augustus insisted she use. She went to the far corner of the garage, to the classic, silver Audi TT she had bought with the prize money from her first art competition, years before she'd ever heard the name Pruitt. It was hers.

She slid into the driver's seat, the worn leather a familiar comfort. The engine roared to life with a satisfying snarl, the sound a perfect echo of the fury building inside her chest.

She slammed the car into gear and peeled out of the garage, the tires squealing in protest.

As she sped through the streets of Manhattan, a single thought repeated in her mind, a mantra of defiance.

He would not take this from her. He would not win. Not today.