5

AURORA'S POV

Raindrops sticking to my eyelids cause the city lights to blur, making everything seem like a warped dream. My wet garment sticks to my skin like a second betrayal as my body trembles with fatigue. However, I continue to move. I can't stop, yet I have no idea where I'm heading.

Not quite yet.

I call a taxi, pull the door open, and slip inside, my fingers tensed from the cold. With his wrinkled face illuminated by the neon light from the dashboard, the driver hardly looks at me.

"Where to?" he says in a hoarse, uninterested voice.

For a moment, my thoughts become blank. I am unable to return home. Not to his house.

"Just drive."

Despite his obvious lack of enthusiasm, the driver lets out a breath and puts the car in gear. The city starts to fade away, its tall skyscrapers looming above me like silent arbiters. My breath is obscuring the window as I rest my head against it.

My only option is to leave Cassian—to really go.

The warmth of my palm contrasts sharply with the coldness in my bones when I put a touch to my tummy.

It's no longer just about me.

I refuse to let my kid experience what it's like to feel unwelcome.

However, a shiver runs up my spine when the cab turns into a calmer street. I look at myself in the side mirror.

An SUV that is black.

Maintaining its distance.

My fingers stiffen in my lap as I swallow forcefully.

No. I won't allow him to do this.

I go onward. "Can you let go of the vehicle behind us?"

The rearview mirror catches the driver's attention. "What, them? Have they been keeping up?

"Yes." I have a harsh voice. "Is it possible to lose them?"

He gives a snort. "This isn't an action film, lady. I don't drive a getaway vehicle; I drive a taxi.

I force myself to control my annoyance. Then stop. Right now.

He sighs and turns to the curb. I toss a few bucks into the front seat as soon as the vehicle stops and sneak out, making careful to blend into the closest alley before the SUV can round the bend.

My heart is thumping. I count the seconds while pressing myself up against the brick wall.

Ten.

Fifteen.

Then I hear it—a neighboring motor humming softly.

I'm not breathing.

An automobile door opens. Then another.

I take a cautious, gradual step back. The sound of my heels hitting a puddle is unbelievably loud in the silence.

A voice pierces the humid atmosphere. "Aurora Calloway."

The voice is unfamiliar to me. But I can know precisely who sent them by the way my stomach turns.

Cassian.

I turn and run.

---

CASSIAN'S POV

The rain is still falling.

Staring at the message on my phone, I sat in the rear of my vehicle.

I lost her.

I clench my jaw. I placed my cup down too forcefully, causing the ice to clink.

Useless.

Aurora doesn't act carelessly. She is cautious. Accurate. She will make sure to vanish if she doesn't want to be discovered.

She's forgetting something, however.

I own her.

I tap on a phone number. Before a voice answers, it rings twice. "Mister Viero."

"Appoint someone to inspect each hotel in the downtown area. Every single apartment she may be able to access, every short-term rental

A pause. "If she does not wish to be located—"

"She is expecting a child." Before I can stop them, the words escape my lips.

The opposite end of the line took a quick breath. "I understand."

"I want hourly updates."

"Yes, sir."

I throw my phone on the seat next to me and hang up.

She believes that she can run.

She is mistaken.

---

AURORA'S POV

The inexpensive hotel has a regrettable and cigarette-smoking scent. Although the bed is rigid and the walls are thin, it is a place of refuge.

For the time being.

I stand facing the mirror and gaze at my image. My eyes are sunken, and my skin is pale. Staring back at me is a lady I hardly recognize.

It's more than simply fatigue, however.

It's resolved.

Cassian is coming to get me. I am aware of this.

Therefore, I must vanish before he does.

My breath catches as I hear a knock on the door. I pick up the closest thing, a lamp, which feels strange and weighty in my hands.

One more knock. This time, louder.

"Open up, Aurora."

I almost let the light slide from my hand. That voice is familiar to me.

With my pulse pounding, I unlock the door and pull it open.

On the opposite side is a lady.

Sienna Morgan.

My longtime friend. The one individual who ever forewarned me about Cassian before our marriage.

Before she lets out a breath, her keen eyes look me over from head to toe. "Gosh. You look terrible.

I gave a feeble chuckle. "Thank you."

Shaking the rain off her coat, she enters. "You're escaping him."

It isn't a query.

I give a nod. "I can't allow him to locate me."

Sienna's arms are crossed. "You don't believe he will? Cassian Viero never loses clients.

"I won't be located." I raise my chin. "All I need is—"

"A miracle?" She ends dryly.

I frown. "Assist."

A little softening of her eyes occurs. "You need more than just assistance, Aurora. You must have a plan.

I hold my hands together as I sit on the edge of the bed. "Then assist me in creating one."

She rubs a hand through her wet locks and sighs. "First, you sever all of his financial ties to you. You have a chance if he is unable to monitor your expenditures.

My stomach churns. That isn't a problem. I'm wealthy.

Sienna looks at me intently. "Are you certain?"

I blinked. "What do you mean?"

Her hands are on her knees as she leans forward. Aurora, Cassian is a control freak. Have you ever verified that you were the owner of your accounts? Or were you only making an assumption?

It chills me to the bone.

No.

It isn't feasible.

Except... I didn't check, did I?

The discovery comes as a shock.

I push myself up. "I have to call someone."

I reach for my phone, and Sienna doesn't stop me. My heartbeat is thumping in my ears as I call the bank's number, my fingers shaking.

The call is successful. I'm greeted by a computerized voice before being connected to an agent.

She asks, "Name on the account?"

"Aurora Calloway," I swallow.

A few seconds go by. Then—

"I apologize, ma'am, but that name does not currently have any active accounts."

My lungs are empty of breath. "That isn't feasible. There must be an error.

Quiet. Then: "Cassian Viero is the name associated with all of your accounts."

The floor wobbles under me.

No.

Not solely within his authority.

In his name.

I end the call without saying anything else. My breath is shallow as my fingers clench into fists.

With an inscrutable look, Sienna observes me. "So?"

I stutter the words. "I have nothing."

She draws a small line with her lips. “Then Aurora—”

She looks directly into my eyes and speaks steadily.

"How on earth are you going to get away?"