Rain streaked the high arched windows of the library, blurring the Seattle skyline.

Inside, the air smelled of beeswax, old paper, and my husband’s expensive scotch.

Upstairs, our seven-year-old daughter, Lily, was asleep, safe from the storm and the rot in this house.

Grant took a slow sip from his crystal glass, his eyes avoiding mine.

“You’re being dramatic, Amelia,” he said.

His voice was calm, but I saw the slight tremor in his hand.

Antoinette, his mother, sat on the silk-upholstered sofa, her posture rigid.

“Really, Amelia,” Antoinette said, smoothing her knit skirt. “To call a family meeting at this hour over mere gossip is beneath you.”

Conrad, the patriarch, stood near the shadows of the bookshelves, his back to us.

He had built the Harrow empire with an iron fist, and he ruled this room the same way.

I did not answer them with words.

Instead, I slid a thick manila envelope across the polished mahogany table.

The heavy paper slid smoothly, stopping right in front of Grant.

“Open it,” I said.

Grant sneered, but he set his glass down on the wood with a sharp click.

He pulled out the glossy photographs first.

They showed Grant and Sienna Cole outside her luxury apartment building in Bellevue.

In one, his hand was low on her back as they entered the lobby.

In another, they were kissing in the dim light of his silver sports car.

Grant’s face drained of color, his jaw tightening.

“This is nothing,” Grant muttered, his voice dropping an octave. “A business associate. She was emotional about a project.”

“A project that resulted in a pregnancy, Grant?” I asked.

Antoinette leaned forward, her eyes narrowing as she glared at the photos.

“Amelia, men in our circle have distractions,” Antoinette said, her tone icy. “It is regrettable, but it is not a reason to tear down this family name.”

“She had the baby two weeks ago,” I said, looking directly at Conrad’s back.

Conrad did not move, but his fingers gripped his gold watch chain a little tighter.

“I obtained a sample of the baby’s DNA,” I said. “Through a contact at the private clinic where Sienna delivered.”