Page 47 of Their Domme

“Nicholette. My office,” Maeve’s cold voice called from the back of the house. I studied Roderick’s face, but he gave me nothing except for a gesture to lead the way.

I carefully stepped around broken lamps, shattered pictures, and my brow furrowed trying to piece together what the hell was going on. The destruction only got worse the closer we got to her office. Conrad was right behind me, and I heard the rustle of clothing, then the click of his gun’s safety being switched off. I appreciated his caution, and even Roderick didn’t dissuade him.

Maeve was standing behind her desk, and my heart dropped, my stomach turning enough that I thought I would get sick. This wasn’t the woman I had met two years ago, with every strand of hair and stroke of makeup perfectly in place. Before me was someone I had never met before. This unknown yet familiar stranger had her white-blonde, slightly wavy hair loose and no makeup in sight. She wore a pair of high-waisted jeans and a t-shirt.

“You were supposed to come alone.” Her voice was still the same, but there was a hint of exhaustion there. “Are you adding even more people to your group? I’d have thought it would be a woman.”

“He’s with Blake,” I told her slowly, my mind racing to figure out what was happening. “And coming alone wasn’t really in the cards considering everything that’s going on.”

“It wouldn’t have stopped you before,” she replied, keeping up the small talk as she looked down at the papers in front of her again.

“You know why it’s different this time.” I stepped forward, reaching out and placing a hand on her wrist to stop her. Maeve seemed to freeze at my touch, but I felt her small shiver. “What’s going on, Maeve?”

“I found the information you wanted,” she replied, gently pulling her wrist from my grip and handing me a stack of papers. “You should sit down.”

All my complicated feelings for the woman in front of me stumbled to a halt when she gestured to the papers. Refusing to sit down, I flipped open the file. My hands started to tremble with the first few lines on the page.

Joe and Miranda Graves. Married for thirty-five years. IVF attempts for five years. Six miscarriages. A stillbirth. During all of this, there were arrests for Joe—assault, sexual harassment, stalking… It all happened outside Millfield while Miranda fought to have their child. Then something happened. Miranda and Joe separated for a few months before they got back together. But why?

Next up were adoption papers for…meand a birth certificate for Thomas dated thirteen years ago.I’m adopted?!

“Nicholette?” Conrad sounded concerned, and rightly so, since he’d barely uttered my name before my knees buckled. Strong hands caught me, keeping me from collapsing, and sat me down on a chair. Looking up, I met Maeve’s stern blank stare, no pity in sight. She moved her hands to my shoulders, and the sensation was almost that of a ghost. Did she feel truly familiar anymore? The contact between us was the brush of something long past, a reminder of a connection that hadn’t been severed, not exactly, but it was certainly no longer a vivid, living thing.

“Adoption papers?”

“Keep reading, little one,” Maeve said gently, a contrast to her blank expression, and I knew this was only the tip of the iceberg.

With a shaky breath, I did as she directed. Adoption papers, photos of me as a small child, and a picture of me with them. It was odd to see the three of us playing, smiles all around. I had no recollection of these happy parents or the laughter in these photos. Pushing that all aside, I continued to flip through the stack and saw my dad had silently become a backer of Sacred Heart Adoption Agency, the same institution that had facilitated my adoption. He’d donated money to them throughout the years until he became a partner.

Does this mean…?

I looked up at Maeve’s steady gaze as things started falling into place. She nodded, concern etched on her face, and my stomach lurched.

“Trash can,” I managed. Maeve moved back while Conrad handed me the small office bucket, and I threw up, the bitter taste of bile making me gag. I heaved until my body hurt, unable to ignore the steady trickle of tears running down my face.

Maeve reached out and wiped my mouth with a tissue when I put the trash can down. “Little one—”

“Did you find out any more about the adoption agency?” I asked, my voice hollow.

“No,” she replied, frustration flashing in her blue eyes. “I still have people digging through the layers of LLCs and dead ends to get more information, but it will take time. Your Oliver might be able to get through faster with his computer skills.”

“I don’t know if I can ask him to do that,” I whispered, squeezing my eyes shut. “He was a child in the trafficking ring, Maeve.”

“So were you.” She broke it to me more gently than she’d ever shared anything, and I shuddered.

There was complete silence as that sunk in, and I shook my head, unable to handle this revelation right now. The only people privy to my breakdowns weren’t here, and I wasn’t sure I could handle one right now. My life was being torn apart at the seams.

“Did you find anything about Thomas?” I asked, forcing myself to compartmentalize.

“He is their child,” she said while moving around to stand behind her desk. “From what we’ve found, all the doctor visits, ultrasounds, and birth records support that. Your records start at the adoption, and I can’t find anything before that. The next important item to note is Miranda’s murder. Thomas and Joe are missing, and they suspect Joe, but that isn’t adding up since we know that he didn’t take Thomas with him. You’ll probably be able to find out more when you go up there.”

I nodded a few times, turning everything over. My mind was happy to have something else to think about. “Knowing him, he probably prioritized protecting himself.”

“Meaning he left his wife there to get murdered?”

“His needs were always number one. Always,” I said softly, flipping through the papers again.

“A few of Joe’s charges happened in Boston and Ashview,” Maeve said after a few moments of silence. “You might want to start there with finding him.”

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