Janessa had seen too much. Cody eating alone at the end of long tables while adults talked over him. Cody trying to show a drawing to his father only for Bryce to wave him away because he was on a call. Cody reaching for Delphine’s hand only to be met with a flinch, as though affection were poisonous.
Janessa had not planned what she did next. She did not think. She acted.
“Come with me,” she said, her voice suddenly sharp with resolve. “Right now.”
Cody blinked up at her. “Where.”
“Somewhere they will not find you. Not yet. Just trust me.”
He hesitated for one heartbeat. Then he nodded.
They moved down the hall. Janessa led him toward the back of the mansion, where the French doors opened to the gardens. The night air hit them in a cold wave, smelling of cut grass and expensive roses. The gardens stretched out like a maze, rows of trimmed hedges and marble fountains glimmering under moonlight.
Janessa spotted a garden wheel barrow near the terrace. She rushed toward it, her pulse racing. She helped Cody settle inside. She lined the interior with a folded tarp so the metal would not bruise him.
He stared at her with wide eyes. “What are we doing.”
“Leaving,” she answered. “If you want to.”