Gold and scarlet streaks painted the sky as the sun slowly rose above the horizon. Lily sat with a hot cup of coffee in her hands in the living room of her small apartment. She barely noticed the scent permeating the room. She did not think about calm mornings. She had a lot of questions, all of them centered on Ethan and the web of lies that seemed to be encircling her.
Everything changed after Jack Monroe's shocking disclosure. She couldn't help but feel like a pawn in someone else's risky game as the secure footing she had believed she had found crumbled beneath her. Something about Ethan's raw, tormented expression made her want to trust him even if she had a gut feeling he wasn't being totally honest.
Her stream of thinking was interrupted by the soft buzz of her phone. With hesitation, she took it up, and when she saw the caller ID—Jack—her heart sank.
Trying to hide the uneasiness in her voice, she responded, "Hello?"
