Chapter 73

• A week passed, and the investigation into "Elizabeth" hit a wall. Robin’s team had followed the trail as far as they could, but Michael Starford’s influence was a formidable shield. The man was a ghost, a legend whispered on the streets. Getting close to him or the woman he was with was proving impossible. The more William learned about Starford, the more he understood Elizabeth's anxious demeanor. A woman connected to a man that powerful, a man even the police feared, would have good reason to keep her distance from strangers.
• William sat in his study, the city lights a distant blur outside the large window. The hope that had ignited inside him was now a flickering, dying ember. He looked down at a photograph on his desk: Claire, with her vibrant smile, her eyes full of life, holding a tiny, beaming Little Claire. He couldn't reconcile that image with the cold, distant woman he had met in the mall.
• "You were right, Robin," he muttered to himself. "It can't be her."