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MIA

“Good morning, Ms. Winters.”

That voice roots me to the spot. What the hell is CPS doing here?

I force a smile back on my face. “Mr. Lee. To what do I owe the…” The word “pleasure” withers and dies on my tongue. “… this visit?” Then I glance around for the other half of the pair. “Where’s Mrs. Deloera?”

“I didn’t think it necessary to inconvenience her for this. It’ll only take a second.”

Then he hands me an envelope.

I look at it. The writing on it, specifically.

And my heart stops.

No. It can’t be.

Yulian senses that something must be wrong, because he’s at my side immediately. “Mia’s probation year has ended,” he says. “You shouldn’t be here, let alone delivering mail. Unless you’ve opted for a career change.”

Mr. Lee stiffens at the sight of him, but doesn’t give any other indication he’s browning his pants. “I’m afraid I’m still with Child Protective Services.”

“That’s unfortunate for both of us.”

“It is what it is.” His head tilts slightly to the left. “Hello, Eli.”

Eli’s hands go tight around his backpack straps. “Hello, Mr. Lee,” he says, but there’s no trace of joy in his words. He knows what Mr. Lee does for a living. He’s fully aware that, whenever he’s at our door, it means trouble.

And the letter in my hands confirms it.

“Mia.” Yulian’s arm wraps around my waist, steadying me. I didn’t even realize I was swaying until the ground stops shifting under my feet. “Let me see.”

Mindlessly, I hand him the envelope.

The second his eyes scan the back, they narrow to fissures. “This is bullshit. You can’t?—”

“Yes, I can. And I must.” For once, Mr. Lee’s voice lacks the usual sneer. “Though in this case, I wish I didn’t have to. Believe me or don’t, but this wasn’t my call.”

“I’ll believe it when I get your superiors on the phone.”

“Yulian, stop.”

Both men turn to me. I almost don’t recognize my own voice when it comes out—brittle, weak.

“When?” I whisper.

Mr. Lee’s mouth twists. “Next week.”

The words on the envelope keep swimming before my eyes, like the whole world is spinning. Out of control, out of reach.

Custody Hearing Notice.

“One week?” I whisper. “That’s too soon. I can’t?—”

“Hire a good lawyer.” This time, Mr. Lee isn’t just talking to me. He’s talking to Yulian, too. “Ask for a continuance. They’ll have no reason to deny it. In my experience, that’ll buy you thirty more days.”

Thirty days. It’s still too soon—much too soon. “And… and after that?”

Lee’s expression goes somber. “I suggest you spend as much of that time as you can with your son. Just in case.”

Dizziness floods me. Yulian’s arm tightens around my waist, keeping me steady against gravity.

It’s happening.

I’m going to lose him.

I’m going to lose my son.

“There’s no ‘just in case,’” he spits. “We’ll fight this. To our last breath.”

“You should.”

I blink. “What?”

“I said good luck.” Lee’s face betrays nothing. “To all three of you.”

Four. It’s the only coherent thought in my head. There’s not three of us—there’s four.

And the only thing that might have kept Brad from dooming us all? The flash drive, with all the leverage I could’ve used to fight back?

I already destroyed it.