Chapter 134
Chapter 134:
Skye dressed in silence, leaning against the wall for support every time her balance wavered. She touched the bandage on her hand. The pain was dull, a throbbing reminder of her own desperation.
She took a private car back to The Spire. The city was washing itself clean in the morning rain. The streets were grey and slick. As the car pulled up to the curb of her building, Skye saw a figure standing near the entrance.
He wasn’t under the awning. He was standing directly in the rain, soaking wet. His suit, usually impeccable, hung heavily off his frame. His hair was plastered to his skull.
It was Liam Kensington.
Skye felt a flash of irritation, followed by a profound exhaustion. She told the driver to stop.
She stepped out. The doorman rushed forward with an umbrella, shielding her, but she stepped slightly out of its protection to face him. She leaned heavily on her uninjured leg, trying to hide the limp.
Liam looked up. His eyes were red-rimmed, hollowed out by sleeplessness and whatever chemical cocktail Seraphina had dosed him with days ago. He looked like a ghost haunting his own life.
“I heard,” Liam said. His voice was cracked, barely audible over the traffic. “I went to St. Jude’s. I saw the ambulance logs on the police scanner and drove straight there. But Thorne’s men… they blocked the floor. They wouldn’t let me near you. They said you were already gone p>
“News travels fast,” Skye said coldly. She wrapped her cashmere cardigan tighter around herself.
Liam stepped forward. He reached a hand out, then dropped it when Skye flinched—not out of fear, but out of repulsion.
“I never imagined they were capable of this,” Liam choked out. “I thought they were just greedy, not… monsters. If I had known Arthur was planning something violent p>
“You never know anything, Liam,” Skye said. She looked at him—really looked at him. Five years ago, this man was her sun and stars. Now, he was just a wet man in a ruined suit. “That is your sin. You chose not to know. You let Seraphina run wild. You let my family starve until they became desperate. You created the ecosystem where this could happen p>
𝘚𝗁𝘢𝗋𝘦 yо𝘶𝘳 𝖿а𝘃𝗼𝗋𝗶𝘵е𝘀 𝘧𝘳𝗈𝗆 𝗯𝘦𝗹ոo𝘃еlѕ.с𝗼m
“I’m fixing it,” Liam said desperately. Water dripped from his nose. “I’m cutting Seraphina off. Today. Right now. I’m evicting her p>
Skye laughed. It was a humorless, brittle sound. “You said you paid her rent through the end of the month. Another lie p>
“I revoked it,” Liam yelled, his voice cracking. “I called the property manager an hour ago. I told them to tear up the lease. I told them to throw her out on the street immediately. I don’t care about the contract. She is gone, Skye p>
“Do you want a gold star?” she asked. “Do you want me to applaud you for doing the bare minimum three months too late p>
“I want to prove it to you!” Liam yelled. “I will burn it all down if I have to! I will fix this marriage p>
“There is no marriage,” Skye said. She turned toward the lobby doors. “Go home, Liam. Before you catch pneumonia p>
“Skye p>
She walked past the security guard. “He doesn’t come in,” she told the guard.