Chapter 157. The Fall Apart

Alexander’s POV

The cold hum of fluorescent lights buzzes overhead as I sit in the visiting room, my fingers laced tightly together on the table, tension knotted in every joint. The chill of this place—the walls, the silence, the smell of metal and regret—crawls into my skin. I’ve never visited anyone in prison before. I never thought I’d have to visit my own mother like this.

She sits on the other side of the thick glass, her posture regal despite the orange jumpsuit hanging off her like a loose secret. Her eyes lift slowly to meet mine, sharp as ever. But there’s something in them… something buried deep.

“You’re finally here to see your mother,” she says, her voice brittle with mock amusement. “But with that look on your face, I bet you’re happy I’m gone. At least now, there’ll be no one to get in your way, no one to get on your shoes again.”