Flora's POV

Aurora suckles quietly, her tiny fingers grasping at my shirt, unaware of the storm brewing in my mind. I shift slightly in my chair, adjusting her weight against me as I glance at my mother, who sits across from me with that unreadable expression on her face.

Her words from earlier linger like an ominous cloud.

"Stanley’s days might be numbered."

I swallow hard before asking, "Mom, what did you mean by that?"

She exhales deeply, folding her hands in her lap. "It’s the dirtiness of politics, Flora. Once you’re in once you’re wrapped up in it,it’s finished. You either play the game, or the game plays you."...