Adrian slammed his fist on the desk. “You don’t know anything!”
“Oh, I know enough.” Mr. Howard motioned to his guards. “You should leave now, Mr. Calder. Before I decide to press charges myself.”
Adrian’s face contorted in rage. “You think this is over?” he hissed. “You think you can hide her from me? I’ll find her. I’ll find her and she’ll regret ever crossing me.”
Mr. Howard didn’t even flinch. “Even if I knew where she was,” he said coldly, “I wouldn’t tell you. Because I was wrong — about everything. I thought you could make my daughter happy. But all you did was destroy her.”
He turned away, signaling the guards. “Now get out of my office.”
The guards stepped forward, grabbing Adrian by the arms. He struggled, shouting as they dragged him toward the door. “You’ll regret this, old man! Do you hear me?!”
But the door slammed behind him before he could finish.
Outside, the storm raged on. Adrian stood under the gray sky, soaked, trembling with fury and grief.
Vivienne was gone. Elias was gone.
And all that remained inside him was a festering mix of rage and regret — the kind that would eat him alive until he found her.