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FOUR

Sometimes it was better to just walk away

Not that Elise necessarily felt any better about the confrontation with her father But at least, as she sat up in her bedroo at her reflection in her vanity otten even worse

Which, considering the stuff she’d said to hi their house on fire?

She’d h None of it had been for show or distraction And hter, the hard things she’d laid out would have opened the door to greater closeness, and forgiveness, and a er on both sides, and now her father was going to petition the King to ht she’d had probleiven his station in the glyhts She would be a physical possession of her father’s, like a la couch

As far as her father was concerned, the issue was closed She wasn’t going to university any in the forround, the details of her roo, the silk brocade drapes, the canopied bed, the French antiques and the hand-painted wallpaper like a set for a Merchant Ivory fil a corset and a cascading hairpiece

None of it was Elise’s style Hell, she didn’t even knohat her style was

As her cellphone started to ring, she took it out of the coat she still hadn’t bothered to take off yet and looked at who it was

"Thank God," she said as she braced her head in her hand "I need you"

"Hey, I’ Are you okay?" Peyton’s voice was hushed, as if her cousin had cupped his hand around his mouth

"No I’ dead in an alley"

"What?" She knew the guy was into sos, but really? "Where are you?"

"Like I said, in an alley," he whispered "I just got killed in a field exercise and I’ave her an address don, she shook her head even though he couldn’t see her "No, you don’t understand While you’re playing dead, I’m under house arrest I’m stuck here"

"What?"

Guess two could play at the surprise, surprise! gaet away to see you--"

"Of course you can Just crack aand ghost out I’ll see you in an hour"