ge of the bed, rubbing the grit from her eyes. She hadn't slept, but her mind felt sharper than
carrying a silver tray. The woman kept her eyes down, her face a mask of professiona
s and ears.
ee. She sat down and took a slow bite of the toast, chewing m
a trembling voice. She had held Clora's hand and told her how awful Essex was, how she needed to get out. And like a
this
ed downstairs. Fa
urned. "Miss Parrish? A Miss
alfway to her coffee
Clora said, h
ch inward. She widened her eyes, making them look wet and haunted, and wrapp
oor o
cost more than a month's rent. Her blonde hair was perfectly curl
Clora into a tight hug, burying her face in Clora's shoulder. "I was so worr
Mila leaned in, a scent hit her nose. S
esperate for affection to realize that her best friend smelled like her captor. Mila had
red her head, letting her messy hair fall for
nees touched. "Look at you, you're shaking," Mila cooed, her voice dripping wi
from under her lashes. The woman was practically vibrating with ex
us. "Clora, you can't just give up. You can't let him break you. Presto
it
eyes looked lost and desperate.
d have missed it if she hadn't been looking for it. Mila lean
get him in to s
a had bribed one of the gardeners, a guy who worked the night shift
she was worried about Clora's mental state. She would paint a picture of a suicidal runaway, g
fect setup f
of her shirt, making her hands look n
handle everything. I promise, it will be completely
yes. She wanted to laugh. Trust her? The
rateful smile. "Mila... thank you. Y
d, the trap was set. The stupid little rebel was going to walk
g more empty platitudes before standing up to le
nd the latch clicked, the fragile, scared express
r driveway, Mila was getting into her red convertible. She was
l silver fruit knife. She picked up an apple from the bowl and started peeling it, her movement
le, carved up and thrown away. In this
n the polished silver blade. H
. But first, she needed to make sure the s
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