He Threw Our Daughter's Ashes Away

The air hung thick with tension, heavy and unmoving.

A beat later, Aidan Mason seared Hailey Carpenter with his glare, then let out a biting laugh. "Seriously, Hailey? You'd cook up any excuse not to save Lauren, wouldn't you?"

Hailey tipped her head just a fraction, face blank. "But Journi... she's really gone."

"Enough!"

Aidan's voice was pure venom. He grabbed Hailey by the throat, pinning her to the wall. "You think hiding Journi is gonna stop Lauren's baby from coming? Let me tell you something, Hailey—I will tear this whole damn world apart to find her."

Even crushed against the wall, Hailey let a low chuckle slip out. "Go ahead. Try it."

The fury in Aidan's eyes flared, then snagged on the ratty stuffed animal clutched tight in Hailey's hands.

Aidan's brow creased. He couldn't piece together where that beat-up toy had come from, only that Journi treasured it, never letting the damn thing out of her sight. He sneered and snatched it away.

Hailey's pupils shrank, her icy calm splintering. "Give it back!"

Aidan let out a cold, ugly laugh. "Give it back? Didn't you just say Journi was gone? What's the point of this piece of trash?"

He lobbed the stuffed animal toward the fireplace.

"No—!"

In a blur, Hailey tore free and hurled herself at the flames, not even flinching at the scorching heat. She clung to the singed corner of the toy, ignoring the searing pain.

Aidan watched her, suddenly, eerily calm. "Hailey, wherever you're hiding the kid, you'll have to feed her sooner or later. Since you won't give her up, you can both rot and starve, for all I care."

He wheeled toward the door and barked, "Lock her in the basement. Nobody lets her out without my say-so."

Silas Rice and his goons marched in, dragging Hailey away.

In the pitch-dark basement, Hailey stared at her festering wounds, doing the mental math on the time she had left. In half an hour, it would be time for Journi's goodbye. No way in hell was she just gonna sit there.

Gritting her teeth, she hauled herself up, grabbed a wooden stick, and smashed the ventilation window. She bit back a scream as she crawled through the jagged glass and slipped out.

She scooped up Journi's urn, her movements aching with care, and stumbled toward the cemetery.

With no money for a real plot, she'd found a tiny, tucked-away spot for her little girl.

Kneeling by the makeshift grave, Hailey laid the urn gently on the ground. "Journi, I'm gonna take a pinch of your ashes, tuck them inside your stuffed toy, and then take you to see the ocean, okay?"

Her words were cut off by footsteps crunching up behind her.

"Knew you wouldn't stay put."

Aidan strode up, his shadow swallowing Hailey whole. A mocking grin twisted his face. "You seriously thought you could pull a fast one? I left the attic window unlocked on purpose."

He glanced around, dripping with scorn. "So this is where you've stashed Journi? You really know how to pick a spot, Hailey."

"Aidan, Journi died three days ago." Hailey's voice scraped out so faint it was almost lost in Aidan's nasty laughter.

"Nice act. You've even got props and everything."

Kneeling, Aidan hoisted the urn, bouncing it in his hand. "If Journi was really dead, you'd be raising holy hell, not staying silent."

Agony twisted through Hailey as she watched Aidan toy with the urn, like her heart was caught in a vise, breath crushed right out of her.

"Give it back."

"Give it back?"

His grin died, swallowed by simmering rage. "I'm done playing your games, Hailey. I'll ask one more time—where the hell is Journi?"

Suddenly, he flung the urn over his shoulder, careless as throwing away trash.

"No—!"

Hailey launched forward, but Aidan held her back. For a moment, the world crawled.

She watched the gray ashes spill into the air, the urn smashing against the ground and spraying across the dirt. A bitter gust of wind followed, scooping up the ashes and scattering them until nothing, absolutely nothing, was left.

"Journi—!"