The kitchen smelled of seared ribeye and roasted garlic.

I wiped a streak of grease from the cold marble island.

Rain tapped against the reinforced glass of the kitchen window.

Above the stove, the red light of the smart-home camera blinked once.

Julian was watching from his office upstairs.

He always watched.

“Clara,” his voice came through the ceiling speaker.

“Are the photos ready for the upload?”

I looked down at my camera.

The screen showed the final shot of my Creamy Garlic Parmesan Steak and Mushroom Pasta.

It looked warm, rich, and safe.

It looked like the life I wanted people to think I had.

“Just finishing the edits,” I said to the empty room.

The house was entirely automated.

Julian programmed the locks, the lights, and the internet.

If I wanted to publish a recipe, it had to go through his server first.

He said it was to protect my brand from hackers.

I knew it was to keep me from sending messages to anyone else.

I clicked through the steps on my laptop.

Step one: Slicing the cremini mushrooms on the maple cutting board.

Step two: Reducing the heavy cream and freshly grated parmesan in the saucier.

Step three: Searing the seasoned steak in the copper skillet.

I paused on the photo for step three.

The copper skillet was polished to a mirror finish.

I had spent an hour scrubbing it with lemon and salt before the shoot.

In the photo, the steak sizzled in butter, the edges crisping to a deep brown.

The reflection on the curved side of the metal was bright and distorted.

It captured the underside of the kitchen island, cast in deep shadow.

I did not look too closely at the background reflections.

I was too tired.

I just wanted the post online.

“Send the files over,” Julian said.

The speaker clicked off.

I uploaded the high-resolution images to our shared folder.

A minute later, his footsteps sounded on the hardwood stairs.

He entered the kitchen, his gray eyes scanning the countertops.

He adjusted his silver cuffs.

“The lighting is slightly flat in the third shot,” he said, tapping his tablet.