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“She told me she felt dizzy, so I had her blood analyzed. The results just came in this morning—I think she was poisoned. Falling into the pool and the medicine to clear her lungs somehow counteracted the poison, but those substances had no business in her system. Someone must’ve slipped something into her drink.”

His words made my blood ice over. I’d already wondered how she could fall into the pool so suddenly. Hearing Dr. Kalvin confirm it only sharpened my suspicions.

“Marquette,” I muttered, realizing that old bastard might’ve tried to get rid of my wife quietly.

He’d been saying I held too much territory lately, too much power, with both Korven and Veylor under me. And he kept pushing for a sixth council member, even suggesting the Sawyer’s after they’d already been denied. Fuck, if he tried to kill my wife, I’d make him wish he’d never been born.

“Thank you, Dr. Kalvin. I’ll look into it.”

“There’s more, Konflict.” He stopped me as I went to hang up.

What he said next made me rush to the Korven estate at top speed. I had to see Serenity. I had to see my wife.

But when I reached the living room, she wasn’t there. She wasn’t anywhere she’d told me she’d be.

A maid came over and handed me an envelope. Inside were the divorce papers signed by Serenity, her wedding ring, and a letter she’d left for me. My hands shook as I ripped it open, heart pounding.

Please, let me go. I just found out I have a reason to live. So please… Just this once… Let me leave, Konflict.

My heart shattered reading her desperate words. Panic slammed through my chest as I grabbed my phone and called Krash—there wasn’t a single second to lose.

“Find my wife—now!” I ordered.

Chapter Nineteen

SERENITY VEYLOR-KORVEN

God, help me.

The prayer rattled in my chest as I sat in the bus station. I was so nervous I kept tapping my leg on purpose. My eyes scanned the crowd, tracking every face, convinced that at any second someone might recognize me. I kept my head down, letting the brim of my cap shield my eyes, doing everything I could to avoid attention.

In Emberwick, blending in was almost impossible when your blood was tied to the Big Six. Everybody knew our families, our faces, our rituals. The spotlight had always felt suffocating, but today that attention pressed on me more than ever.

I’d taken precautions, though. I traded my usual look for jeans, a plain T-shirt, and sneakers. No more fancy dresses or anything that stood out. I pulled on a straight black wig to hide my curls and slipped on big glasses to help me blend in. A baseball cappulled low finished it off. I was now just another face in the crowd, and thank God, no one seemed to notice me.

“Excuse me?” a man’s voice cut through my thoughts.

“Yes?” My answer was steady, though my pulse hammered under my skin.

I forced a small, polite smile and did my best to play the role. I needed people to believe that I was just a student, waiting for her bus.

“Sorry to bother you, miss, but do you have the time?”

“Oh, uh, yes.” I glanced at my wristwatch, keeping my shoulders small.

“It’s 5:37 am,” I said.

He nodded, still watching me. “Thank you, you’re very kind.”

“You’re welcome,” I replied, getting to my feet.

He kept staring, and it sent a chill up my spine. I moved away, not looking back, cutting toward the restrooms. Pushing through the crowd, I ducked inside the largest stall, locked the door, and finally allowed myself to breath.

We still had half an hour to go before boarding. The envelope Valery left had detailed everything I needed to get far away from this city.

Airports and trains were impossible in this situation. There were too many checkpoints, too many eyes watching. The bus was my only chance to get out without Konflict getting an immediate alert about my moves.

I bought a ticket to Saskatoon. It was a long trip with stops in Kamloops, Revelstoke, Banff, Canmore, Calgary, and Edmonton. From Saskatoon, Valery had planned everything so I could reach my uncle out in Newfoundland and Labrador. The last time I saw him was at my mother’s funeral when I was ten. I remembered he and my father never got along, but he was kind to me and promised if the world ever turned against me, he’d protect me. Now he was the only hope I had to stay outside ofKonflict’s reach, because in his province, he held power equal to any of the families in the Big Six.