Chapter 2

The first harsh ray of morning sunlight pierced through the gap in the heavy velvet curtains. It stabbed directly into Seraphina's eyes.

She groaned and forced her heavy eyelids open. Her entire body ached. Every muscle felt like it had been beaten with a hammer.

She turned her head. Julian was fast asleep beside her. His sharp, flawless face was completely relaxed, stripped of its usual cold armor. Seeing him like this made her stomach twist into a painful, complicated knot.

Seraphina threw off the tangled sheets.

She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. Her knees buckled instantly. She bit down hard on her lip to keep from crying out, steadying herself against the nightstand. She bent down and gathered her torn clothes from the floor, her fingers trembling.

She pulled her dress on. She reached into her leather handbag and pulled out a small pink sticky note and a pen.

She didn't hesitate. She scribbled a single line: Your technique is garbage. Keep the money.

She slammed the note onto his nightstand, right next to his expensive watch.

Seraphina took one last look around the luxurious, suffocating room that had been her golden cage for three years. She turned her back, pushed the bedroom door open, and walked out without looking back.

Three hours later, Julian woke up.

A dull headache pounded behind his temples. He reached his arm out across the mattress, expecting to feel warm skin. His fingers only brushed against cold, empty sheets.

He sat up sharply. His eyes immediately locked onto the bright pink sticky note on the nightstand.

He snatched it up. He read the messy handwriting. The blood drained from his face, leaving it a mask of pure, terrifying rage. The muscles in his jaw ticked violently.

He crushed the note into a tight ball and hurled it at the wall.

He grabbed his phone from the nightstand and hit a speed dial number. "Lock down the airports," he barked at his assistant. "Find her. Now."

Seven years later. London.

The air inside the top-floor laboratory of the Zeling Fragrances headquarters was thick with the scent of expensive, custom-blended essential oils.

Seraphina pushed open the glass doors of the lab and walked into the bright, sprawling office area. She was no longer the discarded, pathetic wife. She was now a brilliant, fiercely independent woman leading a highly secretive and successful life in the global fragrance industry. But the world of perfume was her shield; in the shadows, she had reclaimed the medical genius Julian had once tried to suppress, becoming a surgeon whose hands could both craft scents and save lives. The years of hiding, of rebuilding her shattered identity from the ground up, had forged her into a weapon of precision and grace.

She held a steaming cup of black coffee. She walked quietly up behind two small chairs. She looked at the computer screen and frowned.

Lines of bright green code were scrolling frantically across the black monitor.

Six-year-old Gideon sat in the chair. His small hands flew across the mechanical keyboard in a blur. His little face was set in a tight, serious line. He was actively trying to smash through the firewall of the Astor-Vance Corporation.

Beside him, Silas bounced on her toes. She waved her chubby little hands in the air, a cherry lollipop sticking out of her mouth.

"Go, Giddy, go!" she cheered, completely unaware that her mother was standing right behind them.

Seraphina let out a long, exhausted sigh.

She reached out and tapped her knuckles against the wooden desk. Knock. Knock.

The sharp sound cut through the typing. Gideon's hands froze. A massive red WARNING box flashed onto the center of his screen. He let out an annoyed breath and dropped his shoulders.

Silas spun around. Her big eyes widened. She immediately threw her arms around Seraphina's legs, tilting her sweet, round face up. She flashed a massive, innocent smile, trying to distract her mother.

Seraphina squatted down. She pinched Silas's soft, chubby cheek. Her eyes were full of overwhelming love, but she forced her voice to sound strict.

"What did I say about hacking corporate servers before lunch?" Seraphina scolded gently.

Gideon slammed his laptop shut. He reached up and pushed his blue-light blocking glasses up the bridge of his nose.

"I was merely running a penetration test on their security protocols, Mother," Gideon stated calmly, his voice way too mature for a six-year-old. "They have vulnerabilities."

Seraphina rubbed her throbbing temples. Raising two genius-level children was a daily test of her sanity.

The glass door to the office swung open. Eleanor, her assistant, walked in fast. She held a printed flight itinerary in her hand. Her face was pale and anxious.

"Aletta," Eleanor said, handing over the paper. "It's Zara's mother. Her condition just tanked. They need the top surgeon. They need you back in New York immediately."

The soft smile vanished from Seraphina's face.

She snatched the itinerary and scanned the flight times. Her heart rate kicked up. "Book the earliest flight out of Heathrow. Now."

Gideon heard the words New York. A sly, calculating gleam flashed in his dark eyes. He knew exactly who lived in that city. He knew whose territory it was.

Silas jumped up and down, clapping her hands. "Yay! New York! Real cheesecake!" she squealed, completely ignorant of the storm they were flying into.

Seraphina looked at her excited children. A cold dread washed over her chest. That city held nothing but blood, betrayal, and pain for her.

She walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window. She looked down at the busy London streets. Her fingers reached up, unconsciously rubbing the silver pendant resting on her collarbone.

The memory hit her like a physical blow. Seven years ago. The terrifying discovery of the life growing inside her as she fled. The agonizing pain of giving birth to quadruplets, only to be told two didn't make it. Looking at Gideon and Silas now, the two survivors of that night, her eyes burned with unshed tears.

Gideon noticed the shift in her posture. He walked over and silently slipped his small hand into hers. He squeezed her fingers, offering a quiet, solid comfort.

Seraphina pulled herself out of the dark memory. She looked down at her son and gave him a hard, determined smile. She swore to herself that this time, she would not let anyone step on her.

"Eleanor," Seraphina called out, turning away from the window. "Pack the bags."

A collision seven years in the making was about to explode across the ocean.