Chapter 47

CHLOE

I went to the space in the courtyard I’d always gone to for years, my quiet place. My refuge amid the crazy storm that filled my days in this house.

I found my seat on the sole bench that had sat my sorrowful souls in days past, and thought of the future, my legs swinging and heart soaring as far as it could under the circumstances.

Only then did I feel it. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and my mind narrowed down to find the chilly disturbance in the familiar tranquility of the environment that I’d come to inhabit. Then I heard footsteps approaching. I turned slowly but precisely to assess the new entry in the garden. My heart traveled to my throat at first glance. He inspired fear like no one else could elicit from me and I stood very still in dreadful anticipation of his next actions.

He stood there a while and looked straight into my soul. I attempted to murmur some pleasantries when he spoke to me.

“ You are here.”

He simply said. I