The first shove came six months later. We were at a charity gala for the Riverside Women’s Shelter—ironically, Ethan had just pledged half a million dollars to their expansion.

In the car on the way home, I mentioned I’d seen a suspicious transfer of $400,000 to a vendor called Highland Logistics, a company I didn’t recognize.

He didn’t argue. He didn’t explain. He simply reached over and pushed my head against the side window.

“Don’t audit me, Elara,” he whispered. “I am the king of Apex. You are just the bookkeeper.”

From that night on, the bookkeeper began her most important audit yet. I realized Ethan wasn’t just a man with a temper. He was a man with a secret. He was terrified of my mind, so he tried to break my body.

He took my car keys. He replaced my phone with one that had a “security” suite tracking my every move. He moved our accounts into his name, thinking he was stripping me of my power.