Chapter 5
The Cracked Glass
The party finally dissolved past midnight.
The catering staff packed away the silver trays.
The string quartet packed their violin cases and vanished into the fog.
Silence settled over the Calloway estate.
Heavy.
Oppressive.
Poisonous.
Graham stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows in the master bedroom.
He loosened his black silk tie and tossed it onto the armchair.
He didn't look at me.
He stared out at the dark harbor where his cargo ships docked.
“You talked too much with Vance,” Graham said quietly.
“I made polite conversation,” I replied, unzipping my navy dress.
“You sounded like a threat.”
“Maybe I am.”
Graham turned around.
His expression was carved granite.
“What is wrong with you tonight?”
“Nothing,” I said, letting the dress pool around my ankles.
I stood before him in my silk slip.
“Everything is crystal clear.”
He walked toward me.
He stopped inches away.
He reached out and grabbed my chin with his thumb and forefinger.
Not hard enough to bruise.
Hard enough to remind me who held the leash.
“You are my wife,” he whispered dangerously.
“You smile when I tell you to smile. You stand where I tell you to stand.”
“And when you wear your wedding ring for business?” I asked.
His fingers froze.
The color drained slightly from his tanned face.
“What did you say?”
“I heard you in the lounge, Graham.”
I stared right into his dark eyes.
“‘Cheapest investment a man can make.’”
Silence stretched between us like a drawn razor blade.
Graham didn't deny it.
He didn't try to smooth it over with a practiced smile.
Instead, his lips curled into a cold, cruel smirk.
“So you heard,” he said softly.
“And you kept pouring champagne anyway.”
“I’m a good hostess,” I replied.
“You’re a fool if you think you can survive without me,” he spat, dropping my chin.
“My money, my house, my security. You are nothing without my name.”
He turned his back and walked toward the bathroom.
The door clicked shut.
Water began running in the shower.
I stood alone in the dark bedroom.
My phone vibrated on the bedside table.
Another message from the unknown number.
Unknown Number: Check his winter coat in the hallway closet.
My breath caught.
I wrapped a robe around my shoulders.
I slipped out of the bedroom in my bare feet.
The hallway was pitch black.
I crept down the stairs, guided only by the amber glow of the security monitors.
I reached the downstairs coat closet.
I slid my hand inside the pocket of Graham’s heavy cashmere winter coat.
My fingers brushed against something hard and rectangular.
A burner phone.
The screen lit up as I pulled it out.
A text message popped up on the burner screen.
Clara: The shipment from Savannah arrives at midnight. If Eleanor finds out about us or the accounts, burn the house down.
I stared at the screen.
My heart stopped beating entirely.
A second woman.
And a threat against my life.
May you like
Suddenly, heavy footsteps echoed behind me on the hardwood floor.
“Looking for something, my love?” Graham’s voice whispered from the dark.
