Chapter 29 - The Shadow Across the Water
That evening, after Lila was tucked into bed and Noah was fast asleep, Liam and I stood on the second-floor balcony overlooking the dark, tranquil waters of Long Island Sound.
A cool breeze rustled through the oak trees. The lights of Manhattan glowed faintly in the distance, a reminder of the frantic world we had left behind.
"Do you ever think about the day Diane poured that water on you?" Liam asked quietly, pulling a wool blanket around my shoulders.
"Every day," I admitted, leaning my head against his chest, listening to the strong, steady rhythm of his heart. "Not because it hurts anymore. But because it reminds me that power isn't about how much money you control. It’s about knowing exactly who you are when someone tries to strip you of everything."
Liam kissed the top of my head. "You never broke, Sarah. Not once."
"I broke a hundred times, Liam," I said, smiling faintly into the dark. "I just made sure the pieces came back together sharper than the knives they used against me."
Suddenly, Liam’s encrypted phone buzzed in his pocket. A single, short ping.
He pulled it out, glancing at the screen. His brow furrowed.
"What is it?" I asked, sensing the slight shift in his posture.
"A satellite security alert from our private shipping berth in Newark," Liam said, showing me the screen. "A private yacht docked thirty minutes ago without customs pre-clearance. The harbor master says the vessel is registered out of Monaco."
I looked closer at the monitor feed on his screen.
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Stepping off the gangway under the heavy dock floodlights was a middle-aged man with sharp features, wearing a dark navy blazer with a familiar crest embroidered over the breast pocket.
A crest I recognized from the oldest family portraits in the Morrison archives.
