Page 7

EMMA

M y fingers tighten around the steering wheel.

A white sedan is trailing me. The early morning light barely cuts through the fog, so I can’t make out the driver’s face, but my stomach churns as I think about who it could be.

Adrenaline courses through my system.

My body is on high alert, sensing imminent danger.

A sharp curve looms ahead. I should slow down before taking the turn, but I press harder on the gas.

As I swerve the wheel, the tires skid against the damp pavement.

I veer into the wrong lane, my chest tightening as an SUV hurtles toward me.

The driver ahead flashes the headlights and blares the horn in urgent warning.

I manage to steady the wheel just in time.

My heart is slamming against my throat now.

I glance in the rearview mirror, holding my breath as I scan for the white sedan. The dense morning fog makes it nearly impossible to see. As I exhale in relief, the car emerges, slicing through the mist.

It looms too close for comfort.

A blatant threat.

I want to call someone, but I don’t have anyone to call. I push down my rising panic and turn on the radio.

I let the familiar streets of Ravenwood comfort me. I double-check that all of my doors are locked.

I adjust my rearview mirror so I can’t see what’s behind me.

Out of sight, out of mind.

There’s nothing I can do about this imminent threat, so I let my mind drift.

It lands on Klaus Sinclair. I think about the details of his face—his long Greek nose, the scar that cuts across his forehead and cheek, the way the shadows seem to own him.

He’s a man who exudes power. I think about his broad shoulders and how they seemed to block out the rest of the world.

My body seems to have the strangest reaction to that man.

The longer I think about him, the easier it gets to breathe.

Before I realize it, the dense trees on either side give way. I’ve entered the town center. The park stretches out to my right, dotted with people walking their dogs. The soft chime of the café bell rings out as early risers stop for their morning coffee.

Nothing bad can happen to me now.

I’m safe.

Five minutes later, I pull into the hospital parking lot. Only now do I allow myself to scan the surroundings. Nothing seems out of the ordinary, but he could be anywhere.

I hold my car key between my fingers like a weapon. In my other hand, I hold a small bottle of pepper spray.

Somehow, I muster up the courage to get out of the car.

The cool morning breeze brushes against my skin as I walk. There are security guards here, along with CCTV cameras. If someone wanted to hurt me, they wouldn’t do it here.

I enter the hospital and sign in.

Everyone inside is busy, but some of the nurses stop to briefly greet me.

I stop in front of the familiar door. It’s a semi-private room that houses three patients. Nurse Santos, a young Filipina nurse, is checking my grandmother’s blood pressure. Instead of walking inside the room, I linger at the doorway.

Nurse Santos removes the blood pressure cuff and says something to my grandmother before walking away. I step away from the door, making sure I’m out of view.

From my position, I can see my grandmother, but she can’t see me.

I watch her when she thinks nobody is looking.

I see the lines etched into her face. I see the exhaustion in her eyes.

I have to swallow the emotions that rise up my throat. She’s all I have left in this world. I don’t know what I would do without her.

The nurse steps into the hallway.

“Nurse Santos?” I whisper.

The woman startles, dropping the folder she’s holding. I pick it up for her.

“Emma, hi.” She gives me a bright smile. “And please, call me Tessa.”

I smile back at her. She has beautiful tan skin and the silkiest black hair I’ve ever seen. Her full name is stitched into her scrubs—Maria Teresa Santos.

“I made pumpkin pie and cupcakes for you guys,” I say. “I forgot them in my car, but I’ll leave them in the break room later.”

“A fight broke out the last time because of you,” she tells me.

“Over the dark chocolate muffins?” I ask.

She nods. “One of the nurses ate too many and didn’t leave enough for everyone else. World War Three ensued.”

I bite the inside of my cheek. I don’t think there’s a better feeling than people enjoying the food I make for them.

“Am I a terrible person for admitting that hearing that warms my heart?” I ask.

“No, you’re an angel from heaven,” she says, squeezing my wrist. “Thank you for thinking of us.”

Her pager goes off. She checks the message. I know she has other patients to attend to, so I cut to the chase.

“Are there any updates from the forensics department?” I ask.

She blinks at me. “Not yet. And if we find anything, I promise you’ll be the first to know.”

That’s the same answer they’ve been giving me for weeks now.

“And how is my grandmother’s health? Is she improving?” I ask.

She looks away for a moment, giving me an answer even before she speaks.

“These things take time, Emma,” she says. “She’s on several medications at the moment. Once we taper her off, we’ll need to run tests to determine whether there’s been any improvement. But from what I’ve seen, your grandmother is a fighter.”

I glance inside the room.

“She’s the strongest woman I know,” I whisper.

My grandmother took me under her wing when I didn’t have anyone else. She raised me all on her own. She was always there for me.

And now, it’s my turn to take care of her.

“She woke up from the coma, so I wouldn’t be surprised if she makes a full recovery,” Tessa says.

I nod.

When I first brought her to the hospital, my grandmother was in a coma. It lasted for five days, and it was the darkest point of my life.

The worst part of all this is that we still don’t know why she got so sick. A team of doctors is working on her case, but we still don’t have any answers.

“I know I should be grateful that she woke up, but it makes me feel so helpless that I still don’t know what caused it,” I say.

“Hey, that’s what we’re here for, okay?” Tessa says. “We’ll figure it out.”

I gnaw on my bottom lip, wondering if I should ask her the question on my mind.

“Have you noticed anything strange in the hospital lately?” I ask.

“Pardon?” Her eyebrows furrow together.

“I mean, did you see anything out of the ordinary?”

“You’re going to have to be more specific, Emma,” she says.

Heat creeps up my cheeks.

“A person,” I say finally. “Did you notice any suspicious-looking visitors in the hospital?”

Her pager goes off again. This time, she ignores it. Her eyes are fixated on me.

“Is there something you want to tell me, Emma?” she asks.

I don’t have the courage to tell her the truth.

“It’s nothing,” I say, shaking my head. “I don’t want to take up too much of your time. I should probably go see my grandmother before the visiting hours end. See you later, Tessa.”

I’m about to open the door when Tessa grasps my wrist.

“Are you sure it’s nothing?” she asks.

I try to smile at her, but my lips remain frozen. The truth is on the tip of my tongue. It would feel so good to share it with someone and remove some of the weight off my back.

“It’s just the uncertainty of this whole situation. I know that the team is doing their best, but the hopelessness just feels like it’s too much sometimes.”

She looks unconvinced but gives me a quick hug.

“Hang in there,” she says. “It’s normal for these things to take time, but I’m sure we’ll hear back from the forensics team soon.”

“Thank you.” I hug her back.

Tessa leaves, but I linger by the door.

I think about the day I found my grandmother unconscious. I had just returned from a long shift at the daycare center when I found my grandmother slumped over the kitchen table. There was a cup of cold tea next to her.

For some reason, I couldn’t stop thinking about that damn tea.

Instead of throwing it out, I took it to the police. I told them that I suspected the tea was laced. They looked at me like I was crazy, but they agreed to look into it.

They’ve been running tests on the sample, but we don’t have anything tangible yet.

All I had was a gut feeling I couldn’t shake. Something wasn’t right about that tea.

I take a deep breath and walk inside the room.

“Hi, Grandma,” I say.

She turns toward me. She smiles at me, but it doesn’t reach her eyes. I lean in for a hug.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes, darling,” she says, kissing my cheek. I hold her close, trying not to notice how frail she feels underneath me.

When we pull apart, I find her looking at me strangely.

“What?” I say.

“I overheard your conversation with Tessa,” she says.

I tuck my hair behind my ear. “How much?”

“All of it,” she says. “Is he bothering you again, Emma?”

My heart starts banging inside my ribcage again. I think about the white sedan trailing me this morning. I couldn’t make out the driver’s face, but I had a feeling I knew exactly who he was.

“Nobody’s bothering me, Grandma,” I say. “You don’t need to worry about me. Did I tell you I got a new job?”

“Where?” she asks.

“They made me sign an NDA, so I can’t tell you,” I tease.

I pretend I’m joking, but it’s the truth.I really can’t tell anyone that I’m working at Elysium.

She doesn’t look thrilled by the news. She knows that my dream has always been to open my own bakery. But until that happens, I’ll have to do something else to make ends meet.

My grandma glances out the window. I decorated the windowsill with fresh flowers and framed photographs of us so she would have something nice to look at when I’m not here.

There are deep creases between her eyebrows.

“What’s the matter?” I ask softly.

“You’re supposed to be living your life, Emma,” she says. “When I was your age, I was going on dates with boys and attending music festivals with my friends. I want you to experience all that. But instead, you’re worried about taking care of me and paying the bills.”

I take a sharp breath. “I made some friends yesterday.”