Chapter Sixteen
It took an hour for me to convince Miranda I hadn’t been traumatized by watching Strand die and she could leave Mari and me alone.
I made sure Mari had eaten and done her schoolwork before climbing into the shower. I tried not to think about the obscene luxury as I stood in the hot water, scrubbing my whole body three times just to make sure no hint of Walsh’s poison lingered on my skin.
Even when I was done washing, I couldn’t convince myself to leave the safety of the shower.
Hidden somewhere warm and quiet and alone. No bodies on the ground. No secrets I didn’t fully understand.
I pressed my forehead to the cool tile wall.
Images of Strand on the ground, shaking as he choked on nothing, clawed into my mind. Pain pressed on the front of my chest. My shoulders shook
