Chapter 8

In the car, Griffin rubbed his temples. He felt a headache coming on. The image of Allie, pale and shivering in the pool, kept flashing in his mind. It left a sour taste in his mouth.

"Are you mad at me, Griffin?" Kassie asked, her voice small and timid.

He didn't answer.

She tried to touch his arm, but he flinched away, grabbing her wrist. He stared at her, really stared at her, for the first time in weeks. The innocent, wide-eyed look seemed a little too practiced.

"That locket," he said, his voice low. "Was it really from your grandmother?"

The atmosphere in the car turned frigid.

"Of course it was," Kassie said, her eyes filling with tears on cue. "It's not worth much, I know, but it meant the world to me." The tears spilled over, tracing paths down her cheeks.

Griffin's resolve wavered. He let go of her wrist and pulled her into a hug. He was tired of fighting, tired of the drama. He just wanted things to be easy.

"I'm sorry," he murmured into her hair. "It's been a stressful few days." He thought of Allie's cold eyes, of Devon's screams. He needed a distraction.

"I'll take you to the stables tomorrow," he said. "You can ride Starlight."

Kassie's tears stopped instantly. She pulled back, her face beaming. "Really? The horse you gave Allie? Can I?"

"You can do whatever you want," he said, a possessive, ugly feeling stirring in his chest. He would give Kassie everything he had once given Allie. He would replace her, erase her, until all that was left was this new, adoring girl.

Kassie squealed with delight and pulled out her phone, snapping a selfie of them together, her face glowing with happiness.

A moment later, Allie's phone buzzed. She was sitting in a cab, on her way to the clinic to check on Devon. She looked at the screen. It was a message from a number she didn't recognize.

It was the selfie of Griffin and Kassie.

Underneath it, a message: He's taking me to ride YOUR horse tomorrow. And by the way, that locket? I bought it at a flea market for five bucks last week. ;) He'll believe anything I say.

Allie's fingers trembled. She typed a single word back: Enjoy.

Then she blocked the number, turned off her phone, and stared out the window at the blurred city lights.

She picked up Devon from the clinic. He was asleep in the backseat, clutching a small wooden block. He looked so fragile. She made a silent vow. She would get him away. She would protect him.

The next morning, two pieces of good news arrived. Her new passports and identity documents were ready for pickup. And an email from a Swiss neurological clinic confirmed they would accept Devon into their world-renowned program. The email mentioned a potential research grant that could cover the expenses, but the application was competitive and would require a separate, lengthy review.

Allie cried with relief. It was a miracle. A lifeline.

She just had to go back to the penthouse one last time. There were a few of her mother's things she couldn't leave behind, and she wanted to say goodbye to Hector, the long-serving head of the Ryan household staff, a kind old man who had always shown her quiet compassion.

She got Devon settled at the airport hotel, promising to be back in a few hours. Then she took a cab back to the gilded cage.

She was packing her mother's old letters when Hector burst into the room, his face pale with panic.

"Ms. Mclean! You have to go to the stables! Now!"

"What is it, Hector?"

"It's Mr. Ryan," he said, wringing his hands. "And Ms. Rodgers. She... she claims Starlight threw her. Mr. Ryan is... he's going to kill the horse."

Allie's world stopped. Not Starlight. Not her beautiful, gentle horse.

She didn't wait to hear more. She flew out of the room, down the elevator, and into the street, hailing a cab with a frantic wave. Her heart pounded in her chest, a wild, terrified drumbeat. Please be okay, please be okay, please be okay.