Chapter 4

The year I graduated,I turned down Carnegie Hall.

Instead,I crammed into a tiny Brooklyn apartment with Carter,using every penny I made tutoring piano to fund his tech startup.

My clients were ultra-rich.

One hour of teaching paid more than a normal weekly salary.

I taught from dawn till midnight,my fingers swollen and my voice hoarse,just to scrape together his startup capital.

The day his company launched,he lifted me up by the Hudson River,laughing like a kid.

"Elara,I see our future,"he promised.

"Once we go public,I'll buy out Tiffany's on Fifth Avenue and make the happiest bride in the world."

We both thought the hard times were finally over.

But I had no idea.It wasn't the end of the struggle.It was the beginning of my hell.