Rising Fear

KILLIAN

Estelle and I were heading back to the residence after a rather silent so-called date. Yet another thing to keep some goddamned pretenses, to show our faces in public—together, as a couple. I was against this whole shit, but Estelle begged me—yes, literally begged me—to do it. She half-suggested there might have been consequences for her had she failed to convince me.

An emotional blackmail, one I was utterly aware of, but I was also aware there was some truth to her words. As much as I hated this whole situation, I wouldn't want to be the reason she or her mother suffered. Then again, the thought of this fucking tyrant raising his hand on a weak woman made my blood boil. I promised myself I would make Yan Hao taste the exact pain he had caused. Soon.

I glanced at my watch and blew out a slow breath, trying to calm down and failing. There was a reason my dinner with Estelle had been filled with silence. Of course, I had no pleasure in conversing with her, but we hadn't talked