The Woman Who Reclaimed Life

to use the bathroom again. On my way, I "accidentally" dropped my purse, spillin

," I said with

d, there was a small gap. I quickly slid my phone under it, angled it up, and snapped a few blind pictures. I scoo

ouch and opened my gallery. The first few pictures were just blurry shots of the door's interior. But the last

bsolute. The be

o make me lower my guard before they struck again. I used the time to prepare. I called the insurance company and personally renewed my premium plan, the most com

ank, one my parents knew nothing about. I began transferring the bulk of my s

phone rang. It

voice was tight, str

ing, Mom.

day," she said. "We were thinking of stop

ame into the city without a reason. "Oh, I'm sorry,

ut unmistakable sound. A baby crying. It

st the television, honey. Some show is on. Anyway, we

key?

o dusty. We thought maybe we could stay with yo

eeded a place to stay. They were probably living in a cheap motel.

a spare key,

"You always keep a spare in the little magnetic box under the st

ot. I had told her that years ago, in case of a

d it," I said quickly. "The building m

her end. "Chloe, this is very i

ork," I said, my voice firm

immediately sent another text to David: 'Parents are trying to crash here.

t came from my mother. 'We are o

n't a

'Chloe, answ

is ridiculous. Your

ut, not just from my apartment, but from my life. And they were just starting to realize it. The feeling wasn't trium