She even had the stubborn crease between her brows, that exact expression of a child who has made up her mind long before the adults have finished talking.

“Evander?” Isabela called softly.

I didn’t answer.

Chapter 4 — Three Years Earlier

Three years earlier, Gabriela had walked out of my Manhattan apartment with tears she refused to let fall, leaving me one sentence I could never shake.

You aren’t leaving me, Evander.