Sullivan had already left. I stood frozen in the center of the room, watching the   door snap shut behind him.

Although he was fiercely unwilling to leave me isolated, I had to face my fate. I had to offer myself up as the ultimate bait for my father to bite, or this whole estate would turn into a bloodbath. Countless innocent lives—servants, guests, guards—would be wiped out in the crossfire.

I still didn't fully comprehend the deep, bloody history that drove Sullivan to hunt my father with such relentless obsession, but in our world, it was likely just standard syndicate rivalry. A war for territory and dominance. My father would...