Chapter 4

The Grant estate loomed before me like a mausoleum, its imposing Victorian facade casting long shadows across the circular driveway. Three weeks in the hospital had felt like an eternity, but returning home should have brought relief. Instead, dread coiled in my stomach as Colson helped me from the car, my crutches clicking against the stone steps.

"Welcome home," he said, his voice carefully neutral as he steadied my elbow. But there was something off about his tone, a tension that made my skin crawl.

The front door opened before we reached it, and my blood turned to ice.

Diana…