Samantha's POV
Alex and I rushed away from Helena's estate, the terrible silence between us hanging weighty in the air as the evening passed in a blur. Helena agreed reluctantly to assist us, but with every minute that went by a knot of discomfort tightened in my gut. Royce was still the one dragging the strings even if the game had changed once more. And that SMS message validated what I had worried all along. Royce remembered.
Rereading the message, I fixed my gaze on the phone in my hand and felt my heart accelerating. You have planned something. I know. You are not going to win. Simple, direct, and horrifying. Still, it was not the danger that shook me. The fact he had sent it without second thought was noteworthy. No cloak of secrecy, no pretense of protracted game playing—he was r
