Ellery POV
The fireplace in the master bedroom roared, a hungry, devouring beast that provided the only light in the room. I fed it with pieces of my life, watching the flames lick and swallow the evidence of my existence.
First went the photographs. Brendan and I at the Commission gala, looking like royalty. Brendan and I on the yacht in Capri, the sun bleaching the world white. I watched the edges curl and blacken, his smiling face bubbling into a distortion before crumbling into grey ash.
Next came the journals. The heavy, leather-bound books where I had sketched the architectural plans for his casinos, his safe houses, his empire. I watched the blueprints of his power turn into smoke, spiraling up the chimney. I was erasing my contribution. I was scouring my fingerprints from the marble pillars of his legacy.
I turned to the desk, the glow of the laptop screen harsh against the dim room. I initiated the final transfer. Fifty million dollars.
It was a fraction of what I had made him, but enough to ensure June Bennett would never have to rely on a man for survival. The money moved through a dozen shell companies in Panama, Singapore, and Dubai, finally settling in an untraceable account in Zurich.
I pressed Enter. Done.
I closed the laptop, flipped it over, and removed the hard drive. With a hammer I had brought up from the garage, I smashed the component until it was nothing but metal confetti, then tossed the debris into the fire. The room began to smell of burning plastic and old, dying memories.
I stripped off my clothes. The silk dress that whispered of money, the diamond earrings that weighed like shackles, the lace underwear designed for his pleasure. I threw them all in. I stood naked before the flames, the heat licking my skin, watching the trappings of the Don’s wife disintegrate.
shivering, I pulled on the clothes I had bought at a Goodwill two towns over. Stiff jeans. A nondescript grey t-shirt. Scuffed sneakers. I caught my reflection in the mirror.
I looked like nobody.
It was perfect.
I walked to the nightstand where the vial sat. Next to it was a note—the only tether I was leaving for myself. Dr. Evans had warned me that while semantic memory would remain—I would know how to speak, how to drive—the episodic context would be gone. I would be a blank slate. I needed a directive.
I picked up the pen and wrote on a piece of generic hotel stationery:
*Your name is June. You are safe. There is cash and a key in the lining of the blue bag. Get on the bus. Go west. Never look back. He is not your savior.*
I folded the note and shoved it into my pocket. Then I picked up the vial. My hand didn’t shake.
I thought about Brendan. I thought about the way his gaze had lingered on Kiya’s swelling stomach—a look of longing I could never satisfy. I thought about the years I spent building walls to keep him safe, only to realize I had bricked myself into a prison.
I uncorked the vial. The smell was acrid, chemical and sharp, like ozone and rubbing alcohol.
This was it. The death of the Architect.
I tipped my head back and drank.
It tasted like battery acid. It burned my throat, a cold, invasive fire that spread instantly to my stomach. I gasped, the empty vial slipping from my fingers to bounce silently on the carpet.
The room tilted violently.
Black spots danced in my vision, expanding like ink in water. A wave of dizziness hit me, so strong I had to grab the bedpost to keep from collapsing. My heart hammered against my ribs—a frantic bird trying to escape—then slowed.
*Thump.*
*Thump.*
*Thump.*
The edges of the room began to blur, dissolving into static. The fire looked like a distant, dying star. The face of the man in the photo frame on the nightstand... I knew him.
Brendan.
But the name felt slippery. Like wet soap sliding out of my grasp. It meant something... didn't it?
Why was I crying? I touched my cheek. Wet.
No, I wasn't crying. I was escaping.
I grabbed the heavy duffel bag. My legs felt leaden, disconnected from my brain. I stumbled toward the door, fighting the gravity that tried to pull me down.
I had to get out. Before the fog swallowed me completely.
I wrenched the door open and stepped into the hallway. The corridor stretched out, long and unfamiliar. Who lived here? The walls were so high.
*June.*
My name is June.
I repeated it like a mantra, a lifeline in the dark, as the silence rushed in to claim me.
