Chapter 8: Bargains and Broken Glass

The lamp flickers. Lucy stands in the shadow, half-smiling. "Senator Knox, after all these years, you finally remember me?"

"I’ve been by Carter’s place, but you avoided me," I say, awkward.

She sneers, grabbing a mug—a bluebird pattern, Target logo on the bottom—and smashes it against the lamp. The mug explodes, shards scattering. For a split second, I remember the Savannah Ball—her laughter, wild and free, before everything went to hell.

"That day you came to my house, insulted my husband, bragged you were ashamed to be in his company," she spits. "And what are you yourself?"

I laugh, soft and bitter.

"What are you laughing at?" she snaps.

"Can you fool Frank Carter, or yourself?" I ask. "You never saw him as your husband. You never respected him."

I reach for her wrist, tracing my finger to the red glass bracelet—Frank Carter’s engagement gift, etched with ‘Frank & Lucy Forever.’

Lucy suddenly smashes the bracelet against the brass lamp, breaking it into three jagged pieces. "Frank Carter’s a watchdog, and I’m just a bone my sister used to feed that dog."

I pick up the shards, piecing them together in her palm. "Mrs. Carter, whatever the First Lady can give you, I can give you double."

She scoffs. "What can you give me? Just your smooth talk?"

I place the three broken pieces in her hand. "The First Lady’s seal as a gift—are you satisfied?"

She studies me, then laughs. "If my husband had half your courage, maybe I wouldn’t look down on him so much."

She turns a hidden latch on her vanity, pulling out the National Guard’s badge. "I’ll trust you once more."

I reach for it, but she grabs my arm, her nails digging in. "If you betray me again, I will—"

I pull her close. Since she wants power, I’ll promise her power. She’s just another Louise in the making.