The Message I Wasn’t Supposed to See
Outside, rain had turned the path to mud, and my heel snapped. Without a word, Silas slipped off his jacket, draped it over my shoulders, and lifted me carefully so I wouldn’t fall.
As he carried me toward his truck, something buzzed beneath his shirt. A phone. Not an old prepaid one, but a brand-new smartphone. The screen lit up for barely two seconds, but I saw the message.
“$2.4 billion approved. Waiting for your authorization, sir.”
I froze. Silas noticed where I was looking. I glanced from the phone to his worn boots.
“Who are you?”
For the first time that day, he had no answer. And suddenly I realized my family might have married me off to someone they didn’t understand at all.
