LOGINKARENBy the time I got home from work that evening, I was ready to take off my shoes, change into comfortable clothes, and pretend the rest of the world didn't exist for a few hours.The day itself had been productive, but productive days still had a way of leaving me tired. Between meetings, reports, and the endless stream of decisions that came with running A.A. Biotech, my brain felt pleasantly exhausted.The moment I stepped through the front door, however, I knew peace wasn't going to happen immediately.Sophie came running down the hallway at full speed."Mommy!"I barely had time to put down my bag before she launched herself into my arms.I laughed and hugged her tightly."Hello, sweetheart.""You took forever.""I was gone for one workday.""Exactly."I smiled."I missed you too."She nodded seriously."Welcome back."Before I could respond, my phone began ringing from inside my handbag.I reached in for it.Richard.The timing made me smile.We had spoken earlier that day a
RICHARDThe decision didn't arrive all at once.It didn't come after some dramatic revelation or life-changing conversation.Instead, it settled quietly into my mind over the course of several weeks, becoming harder to ignore every time I looked out the window of my apartment.Seattle had once been the city where I believed I would spend the rest of my life.In this city, I had built my career, made my fortune, lost my marriage, fought corporate war and learned what regret truly felt like.For a long time, I had convinced myself that staying was the responsible thing to do. My work was here. My history was here. My mother was here. Every familiar street reminded me of who I had been, and perhaps I believed I deserved those reminders.Lately, though, I had begun to wonder whether constantly looking backward was stopping me from moving forward.Every coffee shop carried a memory. Every office building reminded me of meetings that had once felt more important than going home. Every road
JASONI woke up because the other side of the bed was cold.At first, I thought Karen had simply gone downstairs to get a glass of water. It happened every now and then whenever she couldn't sleep, especially after a stressful day at work. Usually, she would wander into the kitchen, make herself tea, stare out the window for a few minutes, and quietly come back to bed.I reached across the mattress anyway. The sheets were cool, which meant that she had been gone longer than a few minutes.I blinked away the last traces of sleep and looked toward the bathroom.The light was off.The bedroom was almost completely dark except for the soft glow of moonlight slipping through the curtains. The digital clock beside the bed read 2:17 a.m., and the entire house was wrapped in the kind of silence that only existed in the middle of the night.I quietly climbed out of bed, placing my feet gingerly on the floor to avoid making much noise.As I stepped into the hallway, I immediately saw her.Karen
KARENThere are moments in life that you imagine so many times that, when they finally happen, they don't feel real at first.For weeks, I had imagined someone calling me and saying the words I wanted to hear.I had imagined celebration, relief, vindication. I had imagined myself crying, laughing, maybe even screaming.Instead, I was sitting in my office at A.A. Biotech on a quiet Wednesday morning, reviewing reports while sipping coffee that had long since gone cold, when my phone rang.The caller ID displayed a familiar name.Agent Carla Webb.I stared at it for a second before answering."Good morning, Agent Webb.""Morning, Karen."Her voice sounded lighter than usual. Almost cheerful.That immediately caught my attention."Should I be worried?"She laughed softly."For once? No,” she replied. “You should probably sit down, though."I leaned back in my chair."That sounds promising.""It is."There was a small pause. Then she said the words I had spent years waiting to hear."Vict
KARENIf someone had told me a year ago that I would willingly spend an entire Saturday wedding dress shopping with Janet and Diane Mitchell, I probably would have laughed in their face.Not because I disliked either of them.I genuinely loved them.Janet had become one of my closest friends over the years, and Diane had somehow adopted me as her own daughter since Jason and I officially became engaged. She worried about whether I was eating enough, sent me recipes I never used, and called at least twice a week simply to ask if I was getting enough sleep.The problem was that both women possessed opinions—very strong and detailed opinions—and apparently, wedding dresses brought those opinions out in full force.Within fifteen minutes of arriving at the bridal boutique, I already regretted underestimating them."Oh, absolutely not."Diane crossed her arms."That neckline is terrible."Janet looked offended."It's sophisticated.""It's boring.""It's timeless.""It looks like a curtain.
KARENBy the time Eleanor and I settled into our seats at a quiet restaurant overlooking the waterfront, I already felt lighter than I had when I landed in Seattle earlier that morning.Seattle was strange that way.For years, this city had existed inside my mind as a place that carried too many painful memories. It was where my marriage had slowly unraveled, where I had spent countless nights wondering if I had somehow failed, where disappointment and resentment had piled up until I could barely recognize myself anymore.Yet sitting there now, watching ferries move across the grey water while soft music drifted through the restaurant, I realized the city itself had never hurt me.People had. Circumstances had. Bad decisions had. But Seattle had simply been there while my life fell apart.And now, it was there while my life had finally begun to feel whole again.Eleanor folded her hands together on top of the table and looked at me quietly for a moment."I want to say something before
LENAI had chosen a quiet café tucked into a side street near Pioneer Square, far from the louder downtown rush and busy enough that no one would care who sat in the corner booth.Jazz played softly through hidden speakers, and the low hum of conversations blended with the hiss of the espresso mach
KARENThe warm morning sunlight slipped through the curtains and landed directly on my face, dragging me out of sleep. For a moment, I stayed still, staring at the ceiling while memories of last night rushed back into my mind. My chest tightened immediately.Jason.The way I had acted toward him ma
RICHARDI had not taken a full breath since morning.The news report still played in my head like a cursed recording as the private jet cut through the clouds toward Boston. I could have used the company helicopter, but I did not want anyone asking questions, tracking schedules, or reporting my mov
KARENBy the time I got home, it was so late that the streets were nearly empty. The clock on my dashboard had shown a few minutes to ten before I turned into the driveway, and all I could think about was taking off my shoes, washing my face, and falling straight into bed.The house was completely







