ELIJAH'S POV
The courthouse loomed behind me like a monument to my failure. Every step to the car felt heavier, each one dragging me closer to the rage bubbling under my skin. By the time I yanked open the car door and slid into the backseat, my patience was nonexistent. My lawyer was already seated, flipping through his folder, his face a mask of carefully controlled neutrality.
The driver started the engine, but I waved him off. "Not yet."
I turned to the lawyer, my voice low and venomous. "I'm paying you an obscene amount of money, Callahan, and yet here we are. Imogen's walking away from that courtroom like a goddamn saint while I'm left looking like a fool. What the hell are you even doing?"
