Chapter 3: The Woman Who Vanished
Hannah stood just inside Belladonna’s, her coat clinging to her shoulders, her face pale beneath the wet strands of hair at her cheeks.
Her eyes searched the room frantically.
Then she saw Maya.
Then she saw Julian.
The color drained from her face.
Seven years vanished in a single breath.
Julian rose slowly from his chair, the polished cruelty the city knew so well slipping from his expression. Beneath it was shock, then recognition, then something far more dangerous than anger.
Hurt.
“Hannah,” he said.
Maya looked between them, her small brow furrowing.
“You know my mom?”
Hannah crossed the room quickly and placed a hand on her daughter’s shoulder, but she did not pull her away. She only stared at Julian as if the past had finally found the right door.
Julian looked down at Maya.
The shape of her eyes. The tilt of her chin. The impossible familiarity.
“How old is she?” he asked, already afraid of the answer… Continue Reading ⬇️