Pressure of Love and legacy

ldn't

staring at t

s, Ethan. Or you'll

nor. The woman who disappeared from our family history like a shadow era

de sense. But I

arning. It wa

the Milan skyline anymore. All I could see was that photograph burning in my head. Rossy's

e buzze

think you should s

the building that still smelled like old paper and dust. He

you get thi

It's a scanned file from the fou

My fingers paused on a page titled

etti," Luc

ply. "She was of

just a donor-she was managing the orphanage herself. Quietly. O

older tighter. "

ent, all the program records were pulled, the account frozen, and th

under my

o ag

hink he's known ab

ays. Maybe not. But if sh

rl with a mop," I mu

, but I could see t

o something deepe

day, I wa

-7:12 p.m., mop cart rollin

time, standing n

stop

er, calm bu

to talk

around the mop ha

know

. "You saw

een more. Records. Report

down. "So

on't. I know piece

a long moment. The

my father at work. It smelled like coffee and files. Rossy sat next to me, still weari

verything," she beg

what you d

ember being woken up by shouting. I smelled smoke. Someone

remember

though we were just kids in a broken home. But one day, she stopped coming. The staff sa

"You were wha

ix

ter the

't know why until I found the photo a few years ago, hidden in my old t

Edmond Grou

s. But I didn't want to draw atte

that s

meone's trying to eras

le. "What d

e from my coat and l

it with sha

ire p

hard. "Who g

one's watching. And the

ing in her hand. "Then we stop. You

the moment my family's name appeared in thos

don't understand. They'll do anythi

kno

mean

ine that taught me legacy mattere

this

ing to play

red the boardroom for th

his polished smile, sipping espr

n," he said. "Y

said, sitting opposit

"Work stress

p. Every inch of him oozed control. Confid

fi

aled r

nymous

just a player

one pulling

ded to pull ba

d again for Rossy.

a. "Is Rossy

showed up

h sank. "

staff logs. Mayb

don't think this

ung

the securi

t exit," I barked at the guard

d, but I fl

otage

y stepping out

k car pulls

stop

d the door fr

rned t

one grab

was cut t

ood f

the screen, my

was

wasn't just about f

as a c

lling to destroy h