My sister ripped my shirt apart in front of two hundred guests and laughed at the scars across my back. For one stunned moment, even the champagne seemed to stand still.

in my life, he listened.

Two men in dark suits had entered the ballroom behind him. Federal agents. They stayed near the entrance, waiting.

My father noticed them. So did Celeste.

His expression shifted ever so slightly, but I had spent five years learning how to recognize fear in men who concealed it well.

“What have you done?” he asked quietly.

I stepped continue reading …