A chill ran down my spine despite the heat from the fireplace.

“Do not do that,” I said, stepping closer to my daughter. “Do not bring her into this.”

“She was my sister, Claire,” he said. “I have a right to talk about Elena.”

“You lost that right twelve years ago,” I said, my voice trembling with old anger.

I wanted to shield Ruby from the shadow of the past, but the past was sitting right in front of us.

Nathaniel flinched, the words striking him visibly.

“I didn’t know where you went,” he said. “The day after she died, you vanished.”

“I didn’t vanish,” I said, my heart pounding against my ribs like a trapped bird. “I was pushed out.”

“By whom?” he asked, taking a step toward me.

I laughed, a harsh, dry sound that didn’t belong in this beautiful, quiet room.

“Look around you, Nathaniel,” I said, gesturing to the polished walls. “Look at this tower.”

“Claire, please,” he said. “Tell me what happened.”

I took a deep breath, the warm air of the office feeling heavy in my lungs.