Minutes after I gave birth, my husband stormed in with his pregn/ant mistress. “My queen

…Detective Samuels, a longtime friend of mine and a man who had witnessed more human depravity than he cared to recount. His face was etched with an expression that combined incredulity and a simmering anger beneath his composed exterior.

Detective Samuels rose slowly, his presence commanding the room’s attention as if the very air had shifted. The badge clipped to his belt gleamed ominously in the dim light. His eyes, sharp and assessing, locked onto Richard’s, stripping away the façade of confidence the man wore like a cheap suit.

“Richard,” Samuels greeted, his voice a low rumble that carried the weight of authority. “Quite a family you’ve gathered here.”