Chapter 1 - The Secret Under the FloorboardsThe grandfather clock in the master hallway chimed 2:00 AM. In the absolute silence of the Vale estate, I slipped out of my twin-sized guest bed—twenty feet away from Adrian’s sprawling king suite—and knelt beside the loose floorboard in the closet.
My fingers brushed against the cold metal box. I pulled out the burned silver locket. The edges were jagged, melted by the flames of the 2011 fire that had stolen my memories and left me in a foster care system five hundred miles away.
"Who are you hiding from, Lily?" I whispered to myself, tracing the scorched letters.
Suddenly, the handle of the adjoining door clicked.
Footsteps.
May you like
Adrian was standing in the doorway, a glass of water in his hand, his silk robe loosely tied over broad shoulders. His sharp eyes cut through the darkness, locking onto me on the floor.
"What are you doing?" His voice was cold, carrying the weight of a judge passing a death sentence.
