Chapter 1: The Man Who Came Down the Stairs
Chapter 1: The Man Who Came Down the Stairs
“You touched her.”
Josiah Kincaid’s voice was quiet.
That was what made it terrifying.
Bryce Ashworth laughed nervously and glanced around the room, searching for support that suddenly no longer existed.
“She’s family,” Bryce said. “Or at least she used to be.”
Josiah’s eyes never left him.
“You struck a woman.”
Bryce straightened his shoulders.
“She deserved it.”
The silence that followed felt alive.
Then Josiah reached across the table and slowly picked up Tiffany’s phone.
The screen was still recording.
Tiffany opened her mouth.
“Give that back—”
Josiah crushed the phone in one hand.
The crack of breaking glass echoed through the bar.
Nobody moved.
Nobody breathed.
Bryce stood abruptly.
“You think you can threaten me?”
“No,” Josiah replied.
“I think I can end this.”
For the first time, fear flickered across Bryce’s face.
Because everyone in Manhattan knew rumors about Josiah Kincaid.
Nobody knew which rumors were true.
That uncertainty was far worse.
Josiah turned toward Paloma.
A thin line of blood still marked her lip.
“Are you hurt?”
Paloma hesitated.
“No.”
The answer came automatically.
It was the answer abused people always gave.
Josiah saw it immediately.
His jaw tightened.
“Call Dr. Meyers,” he told the bartender.
“And call my attorneys.”
Bryce laughed again, but it sounded weak now.
“For what?”
Josiah finally looked at him.
“For the next part.”
Two security guards appeared beside the table.
Neither had been visible seconds earlier.
Now they stood like statues.
Bryce suddenly realized he was no longer the most powerful man in the room.
Not even close.
“Remove them,” Josiah said.
The guards obeyed instantly.
Bryce shouted.
Threatened.
Swore.
Nobody listened.
As he was dragged toward the door, he pointed at Paloma.
“You’re nothing!” he screamed.
“You’ll always be nothing!”
May you like
The doors slammed shut behind him.
And for the first time in her life, someone had chosen her side.
