Elena’s POV

I know something is wrong before my assistant even knocks on my door, because there is a tightness in the air, the kind that settles in when trouble is standing too close to places that are meant to be safe, and when she steps inside with a pale face and tells me Madilyn is downstairs demanding to see me, my stomach tightens instinctively, my hand moving to my belly before I even think about it.

“She says she needs to talk to you,” my assistant says carefully. “Security is ...