Chapter 3 - A Face Beneath the Shadows Lily didn't scream.
She didn't run.
Instead, she climbed out of bed.
Her bare feet touched the floor.
She approached Adrian carefully.
Then she touched his cheek.
“You have a face.”
Adrian laughed through tears.
“I always had one.”
She studied him seriously.
“Mommy said you were busy.”
Adrian looked toward the doorway.
Sarah stood there.
Watching.
Waiting.
“Mommy was trying to keep you safe.”
Lily frowned.
“From what?”
Adrian looked at Sarah.
She shook her head slightly.
“Monsters,” he answered.
Lily seemed satisfied.
Then she grabbed Mr. Buttons.
“Mr. Buttons knew you'd come.”
Adrian smiled.
“He did?”
“Yes.”
Adrian reached into his coat.
He pulled out a brand-new teddy bear.
Lily gasped.
“He has a brother!”
“He does now.”
For the next two hours, Adrian forgot who he was.
He wasn't a crime boss.
He wasn't an heir.
He wasn't a hunted man.
He was simply Daddy.
He sat on the floor and drank imaginary tea.
He pretended to be a dragon.
He let Lily put a plastic crown on his head.
Sarah watched from the kitchen.
For the first time in years, she saw the man she had married before violence swallowed his life.
Then Adrian's earpiece clicked.
“Boss.”
Vincent's voice.
Urgent.
“Three vans just crossed the Manhattan Bridge.”
Adrian's smile disappeared.
“Who?”
“Yuri Kozlov.”
Adrian stood.
“Volkov.”
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Sarah's face went white.
The nightmare had found them.
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