Page 50 of Death

My eyes flick to Ciara, who’s staring at the page. “Would you like to talk to Grace on the phone?”

Her head snaps up, and her eyes widen. “A call? With Grace? Really?”

A smile tugs at my lips. “Yes, and I don’t expect anything in return.”

Ciara hesitates before she nods. “I’d like that.” A nervous expression tightens her features. “What must I say to her.”

“Whatever you want.”

She tugs her bottom lip between her teeth, then looks down at the page again. “I don’t know what to say.”

“Let’s schedule the call and see how it goes. Okay?” When she doesn’t respond, I say, “I need your permission to arrange the call, Ciara.”

She nods and presses the photo to her chest. “Okay.”

Santiago: I’ll call at 1 pm. We haven’t slept at all and need to get some rest.

Dominik: We’ll be ready.

I tuck the phone into my pocket and say, “You can call Grace later today. Let’s get some sleep.”

I walk out of the office and feel Ciara behind me. Walking into her bedroom, I ask, “Are you going to try sleeping on the bed?”

She moves closer, eyeing the rumpled covers. “Where are you sleeping?”

“In my bedroom.” I gesture with a jab of my thumb over my shoulder. “It’s the room at the end of the hallway. If you need me, you can just call or come to me.”

She nods, then climbs onto the bed, still gripping the photo to her chest.

I walk closer and pull the covers over her, then murmur, “Try to sleep, Ciara. You need your rest.”

She shuts her eyes and slowly exhales.

I switch off the light on the way out and walk to my bedroom. Leaving the door open, I head straight to my bed and fall down on it.

Christ, even though we made a lot of progress, it’s been a long day and night.

Letting out a groan, I turn onto my back and get comfortable before pulling my phone out of my pocket. I’m just about to set it down on the bedside table, but then I change my mind and unlock the device. I search for Ciara Devlin, and when article after article appears about her being a socialite, I greedily take in all the information.

I find out her birthday is on June tenth when I see a photo of a party that was held for her twenty-first.

She looks so happy, her eyes shining with life, and I keep staring at the photo until I finally fall asleep.

Chapter 15

CIARA

My eyes pop open, and I desperately pat the bed until the paper crinkles beneath my fingers. Relief fills me, and I turn the page, looking at Grace and the baby.

I haven’t spoken to her in a very long time, and just the thought of the call is enough to make anxiety tighten a grip on my heart.

The sun shines through the windows, telling me it’s already late in the morning. I sit up and gently fold the page until it’s a little square. Holding it, I climb out of bed and walk to the bathroom.

While I relieve my bladder, my chest tightens with panic as memories of Nolan wiping me threaten to overwhelm me. My hand trembles as I reach for the toilet paper, and I quickly wipe before standing up and fixing my clothes.

Doing things for myself again is taking a lot of getting used to. It keeps feeling like I’m going to get in trouble at any second, and I’ll be beaten.

Santiago said he wants me to do things on my own.

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