Page 47 of Deadly Sights

I shrug. “I guess… The funny thing is, it wasn’t just a dream. I finally have a memory from before my accident, and it’s nowhere near the joyous occasion I expected.”

Although I have a curated identity, I keep a lot of details as close to the truth as possible. Chelsea knows about the car crash and that I was in an orphanage. From there, my life is a meticulous work of fiction Chelsea has never questioned.

“How—that’s still amazing. What else do you remember?”

Chelsea’s earnestness is on another level. She almost reminds me of… A vision of braided hair in beads flashes in my mind, but it’s too vague for me to place.

“Nadira? Is something wrong?”

“I don’t know…” I frown while trying to hold onto the fleeting image. When it refuses to take shape, I shake my head and stare at her with a furrowed brow. “Did we ever know each other as kids?”

CHAPTER 21

THE GANG HAS THEIR SAY

Nadira

Tonight is my last night in the hotel. Everyone will pack the things we bought during our stay and depart in the morning. I’ll be happy to leave, but also a little sad.

After my friends confronted me about Julian and it became obvious that I had more going on than keeping my relationship under wraps, Danae, Moni, and Chelsea banded together to focus on me and Tamara for the rest of our stay.

Despite my initial embarrassment at being the center of attention rather than the person giving support, I began to appreciate the depth of my friendship with these women. True, I’ll never be one hundred percent honest with them, but I share more of myself with them than almost anyone else. Except Julian.

He seems to be my exception for everything, and I’m not sure how to feel about his position in my life. Especially with everyone’s expectations for Thanksgiving hanging over my head.

In the living room of our suite, my friends have popcorn and chilled margaritas in readiness for a Hallmark movie fest. Blankets cover them from chest to feet, and their bonnets and scarves are in place. They eye me as soon as I enter, eager to pounce but respecting the boundaries I established.

“Going to see your new beau?” Tamara asks, her voice more tentative than usual.

“I am.”

They all nod as one. Then Danae rises and hands me an envelope. “Here, this is for him. Please don’t open it.”

“I thought you agreed to give me time.”

“And we are,” Moni says. “We might as well tell her what’s in it, otherwise she’ll toss the letters as soon as she leaves.”

“Letters?” I stare at the thick envelope in my hand.

“The last guy you were remotely interested in tried to humble you every chance he got. He made so many unnecessarily cruel comments about your scar, we thought you would lose your confidence.” Tamara hugs herself. She must feel some parallels with her recent experience.

“Instead, I lost him. Or, more accurately, I tossed him out.” I close the gap between us and sit on the center table to face each woman.

“But we don’t know if this guy is different.” Tamara nibbles her bottom lip. “And we understand that you don’t want to share him with us yet. It’s just…even if we don’t meet him, we need him to know there’s nowhere he can hide if he hurts you.”

“You want to threaten him?” I smile while envisioning Julian’s reaction.

“We might be law-abiding citizens, but we’re smart. With my medical expertise, we can unalive and disappear a body. And ifwe get caught, Tamara will get us off, Danae can hide all our money for when we go on the run, and Chelsea will teach us whatever language we need to learn in our new home country.” Moni throws and catches popcorn in her mouth as if it’s the equivalent of a mike drop.

“And what will I do?”

“Girl, you’re the most important. You’ll smuggle us out of the country with your shipping contacts. But make sure, we get a luxury container with air, electricity, proper furniture, food—you know I need a daily supply of chocolate. And?—”

“How do you not have diabetes with that sweet tooth of yours?”

“Take that back! I don’t need those curses following me. I rebuke thee! I rebuke thee!” Chelsea mimics throwing holy water on me and we all burst into laughter.

“Alright, I’ll deliver the letters.” I hold my hand against my heart. “And thank you for being the most amazing friends a girl could ask for.”

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