"Rumor has it she was pregnant with a bastard and killed herself out of shame..."
The whispers buzzed like a kicked hornet's nest.
Expressionless, I flung his hand away hard enough to send him stumbling.
I bent down. Straightened the child's bow tie. Rose to my full height.
Slowly, I peeled off the glove, revealing a palm roughened by years of saltwater and hard labor.
"Mr. Farley, you're mistaken." My voice was void of anything human. "I am this child's father, not your ex-wife."
Behind Liam, Evelyn Fox covered her mouth and screamed. "A ghost! Liam, she's a ghost!"
She cowered against his back, trembling violently.
Liam pulled her into his arms without thinking—muscle memory carved into his bones.
After murmuring something soothing, he turned back to me. The shock in his eyes had already curdled into pure disgust.
Five years later, his gaze still knew exactly where to stab.
He looked me up and down, sneering at my cargo pants and combat boots before his attention settled on the child.
"You didn't die, just hid for five years? What, did you run out of money? Did you drag this bastard back to beg?"
He studied me like I was a dog wagging its tail for scraps.
"Nora, that outfit doesn't even cost five hundred dollars. Can your lover not afford to keep you anymore?"
Snickers rippled through the crowd.
I didn't look at him. I took the Rubik's cube from the child's hand and set it on the table.
Then I raised the bidding paddle.
My voice sliced through the venue, cool and clear. "Fifty million."
The room erupted.
That was the land Liam had been determined to win. The starting price was only twenty million.
The mockery on Liam's face froze solid.
The auctioneer brought the gavel down, nearly vibrating out of his skin with excitement.
A staff member sprinted over clutching a card terminal.
I rolled up my sleeve, exposing the jagged scar running down my wrist.
Decompression sickness had left its brand—proof that I had fought with my life every single day for the past five years.
I swiped my card. Signed. Movements fluid as water.
"Oh, and one more thing." I shoved the black card back into my pocket and met Liam's gaze. "Mr. Farley, if you aren't using your eyes, donate them. Get out of my way."
I took the child's hand and turned to leave.
Liam's expression darkened to a sickly shade of iron. He jerked his chin at his bodyguards.
*Boom.*
The main doors slammed shut.