“The girl is terrified,” Jason replied with a soft laugh. “She knows exactly what will happen to her family if she doesn’t cooperate.”

I squeezed my eyes shut, my hands curling into fists.

My father had traded me like a piece of livestock to save his own skin, and Jason was holding the leash.

“Make sure the notary is here by eight,” Jason added. “I want everything filed before the board members even take their seats.”

The man in the suit nodded and began to descend the stairs.

Jason stood at the landing for a moment, looking toward the west wing where I was hiding.

I held my breath, shrinking deeper into the recess of the doorway.

After what felt like an eternity, he turned and walked down the opposite corridor toward his private quarters.

I let out a slow, trembling breath and slipped into Ethan’s room, locking the door behind me.

The only sound in the room was the steady, rhythmic hum of the oxygen machine and the soft beep of the heart monitor.

The green light of the monitor cast a sickly glow across the room, illuminating Ethan’s pale, sharp features.