Chapter 60 — Blood Does Not Mean Innocence
Kiera knew something was wrong the moment she stepped onto the stage again.
It wasn't the lights.
It wasn't the cameras.
It wasn't even the hunger in the reporters' eyes.
It was the silence.
Not anticipation—calculation.
The kind of quiet that came before a blade slid between ribs.
She stood still, fingers wrapped around the microphone, breathing slow and controlled. Somewhere behind the glass walls, the city moved on, ignorant of the reckoning about to unfold.
"Kiera," Kade murmured behind her. "We can stop this."
She shook her head once.
"No," she said softly. "This ends now."
The moderator barely had time to introduce her before she spoke.
"Ten minutes ago," Kiera began, her voice steady, "my past was dragged into public view without my consent."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
"Police reports. Hospital visits. My childhood home. My father."
Her chest tightened at the word.
