“For seven years, I loved my guardian, Kendrick Page. He was my protector, my family, my entire world. The day I confessed, he called my love "unhealthy" and kicked me out. Then he brought home his fiancée, Chrissy. She took my room and my memories before revealing their engagement was a "charade"-a cruel game Kendrick designed to prove I was a burden and drive me away for good. His final act of cruelty was asking me to be his maid of honor. The man who raised me hadn't just rejected me; he had orchestrated my complete humiliation just to be free of his responsibility. Heartbroken, I escaped to Boston to start over. I met Adolfo Joyce, a brilliant, intense mentor who saw the pain I tried to hide. But just as I started to feel safe, he cornered me, his eyes holding a shocking secret. "Amirah," he whispered, his voice low and urgent. "What is your mother's name?"”