Chapter 5 - The First BetrayalClaire stood alone in her apartment, staring at an old photograph of her father.
Henry Dawson had been a gentle man.
Quiet.
Brilliant.
Too honest for the world he entered.
She remembered the night he died.
Rain against the windows.
An ambulance outside.
Her mother's screams.
And Victor Kane standing across the street.
Claire had never forgotten him.
Her phone rang.
“Hello?”
Victor's voice was calm.
“You've been careless.”
Claire closed her eyes.
“I haven't told Ethan anything.”
“You don't need to.”
“What do you want?”
“I want Ethan distracted.”
“And if I refuse?”
A pause.
“Your mother disappears.”
Claire's breath caught.
She had spent years obeying Victor because she believed obedience was the only way to keep her mother alive.
But something had changed.
She loved Ethan.
And love had made obedience impossible.
“I won't betray him,” she whispered.
Victor laughed softly.
“You already have.”
The call ended.
Claire looked into the mirror.
For the first time, she understood that sooner or later, she would have to choose.
May you like
Her family.
Or Ethan.
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