Chapter 1
The crystal chandeliers of the Alderbrook estate blazed with immaculate, daylight-bright brilliance. Two hundred guests in tailored dinner jackets and silk gowns chatted across the ballroom, their laughter competing with the chime of silver against porcelain.
At the head table, beside a fluted crystal water goblet catching the sharp glare of the lights, thirty-seven-year-old Vesper Alderbrook stood over six-year-old Lottie. Her emerald evening gown shimmered as she leaned down, her manicured fingers clamping hard around the stem of the goblet.
"Drink," Vesper said, her voice a purr of venom beneath her easy society smile. "If you want your mother to stay."
Lottie wrenched her head to the side, pressing her lips together into a pale, bloodless line. Her small patent-leather flats squeaked against the hardwood as she tried to retreat toward the adjoining service doorway.
Vesper’s hand darted out. Her diamond rings dug into the soft flesh of the child’s chin, wrenching the girl’s face back toward the glass. The cold crystal rim struck Lottie’s teeth with a faint clink.
"Don't test me, you little brat," Vesper whispered. "Open your mouth."
"She said no," a voice cut through the air.
Godwin Alderbrook’s fingers closed around Vesper’s wrist like an iron cuff. At forty-eight, Godwin did not raise his voice; he did not need to. His charcoal three-piece suit was impeccably cut, his gold signet ring gleaming under the high lights. With a single, fluid snap of his forearm, he levered the goblet cleanly out of his cousin’s grip.
Lottie lunged forward instantly, her small hands bunching into the fine wool of Godwin’s jacket. Her chest heaved beneath her pale pink cardigan, her cheeks blotched red with panic.
"Grandpa Godwin..." Lottie gasped, her voice trembling so violently it cracked. "Mommy tasted yours. Now she won’t wake up."
Godwin’s steel-gray eyes shifted from the child’s tear-stained face down to the untouched water. The surface was perfectly clear, save for a faint, oily sheen swirling beneath the rim.
"What did you say, Lottie?" Godwin asked, his tone dropping into a deadly, quiet register.
"She took a sip from your place before you sat down," Lottie sobbed, pointing a shaking finger toward the service door. "She fell on the floor. She won't open her eyes."
Godwin set the goblet back on the tablecloth with deliberate, noiseless precision. With his left arm, he swept Lottie entirely behind his frame, sheltering her small body against his hip.
Vesper reached toward the glass, her polished smile fraying at the edges as her eyes darted to the nearest table of city aldermen. "Godwin, don't be ridiculous. Her mother is resting. She’s an overworked maid with low blood sugar. Don't frighten the guests over domestic nonsense."
"Stay where you are, Vesper," Godwin said.
"I’m the hostess of this anniversary, Godwin!" Vesper hissed, taking a sudden, aggressive step forward. "Give me the glass! I’ll pour it out myself!"
She lunged past his shoulder, her fingers clawing toward Lottie’s arm to drag the child away.
Godwin didn't flinch. He stepped inside her reach, caught her forearm mid-air, spun her roughly around, and slammed her chest-first against the heavy mahogany edge of the head table.
A heavy silver napkin holder tipped over with a dull clang, scattering folded linen across the carpet. The crystal goblet wobbled once, but remained upright, inches beyond Vesper’s outstretched fingers.
"Do not move," Godwin said into her ear.
Vesper wheezed, pinned flat against the wood, her diamond earrings shivering against her neck. "Godwin, you're hurting me! Everyone is watching!"
"Let them watch," Godwin replied.
Silas, Godwin’s senior bodyguard, appeared from the perimeter shadows like a ghost, his hand clamping over Vesper’s upper arm as Godwin stepped back.
Lottie’s small hand extended from behind Godwin’s leg, her finger aiming directly through the half-open service door. "In there. Behind the ice bins."
Godwin gestured with two fingers. A second guard slipped instantly through the service entrance, his hand resting beneath his lapel.
Godwin reached down and picked up the crystal goblet by its delicate stem, lifting it into the bright light.
"Look at me, Vesper," Godwin said.
Vesper lifted her chin against Silas’s iron grip, her chest heaving, her eyes darting across the room.
May you like
"Why did you need a second taster?" Godwin asked, his voice cutting through the sudden silence of the nearby tables.
Vesper’s gaze fell to the water, her lips parting, but no sound came out. Behind the service door, the heavy thud of an enforcer’s boots echoed across the ceramic tile.
