Page 41 of The Echo of Forever

But something had happened, and only I had the answer, except I couldn’t remember.

Because I missed you.

I stared at the shower floor, watching suds from my first lather wash down the drain as Demetrius plagued my thoughts.

He really sounded like he meant it.

In fact, the look in his eyes that night felt so…personal.

He’d said he could help me fill in the gaps, but I wasn’t sure.

I couldn’t trust anybody, including him.

Not the man I’m supposed to be killing.

Shaking off remnants of him from my mind, I cut the shower and toweled off.

My office bathroom came equipped with a small walk-in closet, where I kept my wardrobe for occasions like today.

I oiled down and dressed in a pair of navy blue, straight-legged dress pants and a loose-fitting cream blouse.

Thankfully, I planned for being covered in someone else’s blood and slicked my hair back properly at home.

I entered my office and took a seat behind the desk, slipping my feet into the pair of five-inch heels I’d left underneath it.

“Knock knock,” Carmen called before pushing the door open and poking her head inside. “Your two o’clock is here. Can I send her in?”

I nodded, and not even a second later, the prettiest, lanky woman I’d ever laid eyes on entered my space.

Deep, dark grey eyes met mine, and I tipped my head, taking in her all black attire, but more importantly, how gracefully she moved to sit.

She was dark skinned with her hair pulled into two large puffs, exactly how I liked to wear mine from time to time.

The initial vibe I picked up from her was cool and calm, but deadly if need be.

I was trained to know a killer when I saw one.

“You’re exactly his type,” was the first thing out of her mouth.

But it was the soft cadence that threw me first, not the statement.

“Hi, hello,” I said, leaning back. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, too…”

She smiled.

“Violet O’Sullivan.”

O’Sullivan?

My day had just gotten much more interesting.

“You recognize the name,” she said, leaning back and stretching her legs out. “Good. I was hoping I didn’t have to do much explaining on that front.”

I waited for her to continue, but it seemed she was waiting for me.

Mm.

“It’s not every day I get to meet someone from outside of Everwood,” I mused, waving my hand over the candle flame. “What brings you to my neck of the woods, Ms. O’Sullivan?”