I waited outside the cold-storage facility for a while before the contact I'd arranged finally arrived. I wrapped the remains carefully once more and placed the bundle into their hands. My voice was so steady it barely carried any feeling at all.
"Two weeks from now, bring this to the feast-night celebration. Hand it to Julian Frost personally."
"This is my gift to him."
Once everything was handled, I drove back to the Moretti compound alone.
I had barely stepped through the estate's front doors when my phone buzzed.
I opened the message. It was from Adrian Lennox.
"Ungrateful girl. You think marriage makes you untouchable? How many years since you've shown your face at home? Tomorrow is my birthday feast. You will be there."
Every word dripped with accusation and command.
I glanced at the screen and typed three words back.
"Understood. I'll come."
It was true. I hadn't been back to that house in a long time. That place had only ever belonged to Adrian Winslow. I was just a surplus. An extra seat at a table that had never been set for me.
I'd gotten used to it a long time ago.