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Of course Berta knows none of this, because I’ on a weak sea ive him my best fake sht?"
"Oh" He pats his belly, never bothering to open the er"
"That’s easy"
"I’rins, and the smile reaches his eyes "And please, call me John"
Chapter forty-seven
CAIN
I can’t believe we found her
Given the life she used to lead, I can’t believe she made such a rookie mistake As I sit in h the diner , I think about how fking thankful I am that she did
I owe DanI don’t knohat I owe hih his connections, CNN picked up theproblem piece From there, it filtered out to a lot of se call on o, John had the number traced to a pay phone in Mobile, Alabaht out the next day I would have been, too, had he not convinced ured she had used a randoer--to find her
But she didn’t She used the one only four blocks away And, thanks to John’s weakness for local diners, he stuht hours
She’s cut her hair It looks really pretty It ht makeup on her face
She still looks like a little doll
Fuck, have I everevery ounce of ht now I’m torn I don’t knohy she hasn’t come back to me, now that Sam is dead I assume that’s why she called when she did, but I can’t be certain
That makes ardless Maybe she wants a clean break, with no memories of her old life If that’s the case, I don’t want toon John confire of the diner owner--a nice lady with a criround, who closes the place to attend church early on Sundays
And so I sit And I quietly watch the woman I don’t want to live without live a life without ht
CHARLIE
My keys make a loud noise as they drop onto the dresser beside the door My apron and purse follow, and then I kick off htly ritual Next is a shower, to wash the greasy diner s on the la and, besides, there’s enough light shining into thefro on my bed
"You just can’t sleep without these fancy sheets, can you?"
I yelp out in surprise as I juet in here?" I can barely hearinto my ears
He stands and I instinctively take a step forward, toward that beautiful man as ht up with me Butainst an erow shalloith the rising panic
Is he here to tell me that he hates me? That the cops will be here incloser and closer, until his overpowering bodyface makes me lean in
And those dark brown eyes ainst his chest without hesitation, his defined arht "You know that I’m resourceful," I soh and I sense the tension in his body slide out "God, Charlie, you’ve put h hell"