Chapter 1

The heavy brass doors of the city observatory creaked open, releasing a breath of cool, sterile air that smelled faintly of ozone, old velvet, and the metallic tang of polished lenses. I stepped inside, the heels of my black pumps clicking sharply against the marble floor, the sound echoing in the vast, cavernous silence of the main viewing hall. It was late, far later than I had expected to be here, and the event—the annual charity gala for the astronomical society—was still in full swing downstairs, a distant hum of chatter and clinking glassware that seemed worlds away from the isolation of this upper sanctuary. I had come looking for a moment of escape, a place to decompress after three hours of forced pleasantries and cheap champagne, but my eyes had been drawn immediately to the large, circular window at the far end of the room. And there he was. Daddy. He stood alone, his back to me, silhouetted against the sprawling panorama of the night sky visible through the massive glass dome. He had kicked off his tuxedo shoes, leaving his polished leather oxfos on the side, and his white dress shirt was unbuttoned at the collar, the sleeves