Elias’s car rolled through the massive gates of the Carter Estate, the tires crunching against the smooth gravel driveway. His jaw was tight, his hands gripping the steering wheel far harder than necessary. 

The events from the previous night replayed in his mind like a loop he couldn’t turn off—the look on Maya’s face, the way her hands trembled, the tears she had tried to hide before fleeing the dining room.

He parked and stepped out without a glance at the beautiful landscaping or the butler who came forward to greet him. Elias had only one destination in mind—his grandmother’s study. He strode across the gleaming marble floors, his polished...