Chapter 13: Secrets In The Smoke
Author: Yourpsychodreams
last update Last Updated: 2024-11-19 14:18:50
James lingered at Emma’s side until the moon began its descent. She clung to his arm, her voice soft and pleading.

“Aren’t you staying the night with me?”

Though he hesitated, her glassy eyes made him falter. With a forced smile, he sat back down, intending to leave once she drifted off. Her breathing eventually grew shallow and steady, but James found himself rooted in place.

The night outside pressed against the window like a silent spectator, and with every tick of the clock, James felt his resolve weaken. Guilt gnawed at him, an emotion he couldn’t quite define, tangled between duty and something darker.

Elsewhere, outside the hospital. Fiona Hawthorn stepped into the cold embrace of the night, her heels clicking faintly against the pavement. She lit a cigarette with shaking hands, taking a long drag that filled her lungs with smoke and a fleeting sense of calm.

“You know smoking is prohibited here, right?”

The voice startled her, deep and smooth like velvet over
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