“Why was it with Nathaniel?”
“Margot put it there.”
“Why?”
“To keep herself alive,” he said. “She knew if she was caught, she needed leverage.”
I felt sick. “And what happened to it?”
“I secured it.”
“Where?”
His eyes met mine.
Before he could answer, every light in the library went out.
The house plunged into darkness.
For one suspended second, there was only the fire and the sound of my heartbeat.
Then the security alarm screamed.
My father grabbed my arm.
“Nursery,” he said.
We ran.
Pain tore through my body with every step. I had no strength, no speed, no breath. But I ran anyway.
The hallway emergency lights flashed red. Doors opened. Guards shouted. Somewhere downstairs, glass shattered.
My mother appeared at the top of the stairs in a robe, holding a phone and a small pistol with the calm familiarity of a woman who had never told me she knew how to use one.
