The stench of rot clung to Ethan Cole's uniform as he hoisted another black bag into the compactor truck, the hydraulic crusher grinding with a sound like bones breaking. Three weeks since the Gala. Two since he'd watched his mother walk out of his penthouse. One since he'd learned his entire life was a lie written in his father's handwriting. And yet here he was, back in the role that had started it all—because sometimes the only way to see the board clearly was to stand where nobody looked.The Harrison Hills neighborhood was a different kind of prison than the one his mother had built in glass and steel. Here, the mansions were just as big, the lawns just as manicured, but the people carried a different scent: old tobacco money mixed with desperation. These were the families who'd watched the Wellington scandal on the news and thanked God they'd only been spectators. They hadn't realized the show was just getting started."Hey! Garbage man!" The voice cut through the morning air li

The stench of rot clung to Ethan Cole's uniform as he hoisted another black bag into the compactor truck, the hydraulic crusher grinding with a sound like bones breaking. Three weeks since the Gala. Two since he'd watched his mother walk out of his penthouse. One since he'd learned his entire life was a lie written in his father's handwriting. And yet here he was, back in the role that had started it all—because sometimes the only way to see the board clearly was to stand where nobody looked.The Harrison Hills neighborhood was a different kind of prison than the one his mother had built in glass and steel. Here, the mansions were just as big, the lawns just as manicured, but the people carried a different scent: old tobacco money mixed with desperation. These were the families who'd watched the Wellington scandal on the news and thanked God they'd only been spectators. They hadn't realized the show was just getting started."Hey! Garbage man!" The voice cut through the morning air li