When I woke up in the hospital, Leon was sitting beside the bed.
He looked exhausted. A flicker of guilt passed through his eyes, there and gone.
I struggled to sit up, reaching for water. He pressed my shoulder back down.
"Easy. You were out for three days. Don't push it."
"Oh—once you're discharged, we'll move to the villa on the west side of the city."
My lips were cracked and dry.
"Leon, you can stop pretending you care. Whether I live or die doesn't actually matter to you, does it?"
"I'm nothing but Pamela's walking blood bag."
I pulled the blanket higher. "Don't worry. I'll rest up and recover like a good girl."
And then I'll disappear for good.
His expression darkened with irritation. He opened his mouth to say something, but his phone erupted in a frenzy of vibrations.
He answered, and whatever he heard changed his face completely. He turned and walked out without another word.
I tugged the corner of my mouth into a bitter, self-mocking smile.
That was when my own phone buzzed.
A message from an unknown number.
"Want to know who killed your daughter?"
Before I could even process it, a courier walked in and handed me a paper bag.
I tore it open. My entire body went rigid.
A pink hair clip. My daughter's pink hair clip.
My hand shook so badly I nearly dropped it.
I'd always suspected the fire was connected to Pamela. But the person who actually set it had never been found.
I hesitated for only a moment. Then I ripped the IV needle from my arm, changed into my clothes, and followed the address printed on the bag.
It led me to a bar.
I scanned the room and spotted them in a shadowed corner. Leon and Pamela.
They were arguing.
"You don't even like me, so why do you care which man I have a drink with?" Pamela yanked her hand free, her voice trembling with practiced hurt. "I ran into someone I knew. We had a couple of drinks. And you beat him up for it."
"Besides, your brother's been gone for years. Even if I meet someone new, what's wrong with that?"
Leon gripped her arm, his eyes burning with a fire that could have scorched through bone.
"I don't care. I won't have you hanging around men like that."
"And you're still sick."
Pamela suddenly cupped his face in both hands, her voice dropping low. "Leon, is it really so hard to admit you love me?"
Then she kissed him.
His body stiffened. But he didn't push her away.
The kiss deepened until they were both breathless.