Chapter 60
CHARLOTTE
We stepped into a hall with pastel pink walls and flowers painted in darker shades in the corners. The air smelled fresh, yet held a familiar scent I couldn’t quite place. Sonia started to walk towards the end of the hall, where a single white door stood. I followed her with cautious steps and stopped in my tracks as she placed her hand on the knob. “What am I doing?” I muttered. She turned around to look at me.
A look of confusion crossed her features for a moment, then it was instantly replaced by understanding. She let go of the door and turned fully to face me. We stared at each other in silence, and then she smiled knowingly. “You’re scared you’re walking into something bad?” she asked.
I shrugged in response and ran my hand through my hair, which had been in a messy bun all day. I lowered my gaze and stared at the robe for a minute. “I’ve had quite the day, and my life has taken a drastic turn the last few weeks, so forgive me if I don’t trust anything,” I stated, moving my gaze to the door.
She turned to look at the door once more, then chuckled and turned her attention back to me. “If you weren’t scared, I’d think you were a fool. It’s good that you’re not,” she replied.
“Why, thank you,” I said dryly, sighing as I continued. “No. That’s not helping. Nothing you’ve said in the last few minutes has reassured me that any of this is a good idea. I don’t know what’s going on.”
“It’s not my job to say a lot of things,” she responded, and I scoffed.
“You had no problem saying something a while ago,” I retorted. “The suspense is killing me, and for what, really? You’re trying to tell me that things could get ugly? Well, I’ve been spending most of my life living through the ugliest
moments. What’s another?”
“I… I can’t say I understand how you feel, but…” She began and stopped talking as I walked past her.
I was uncertain about what awaited me behind the door, but standing outside, in these clothes that smelled like death, with my body aching in different places, annoyed me. I didn’t want to get into any trouble if I were being honest, but at some point, I got tired of holding back and being skeptical.
What was the worst that would happen? I’d lose my life? Well, I could’ve been blown to smithereens a few minutes ago. If Sonia wasn’t going to do anything but say things that continuously left me feeling anxious, I wasn’t about to stick around and deal with it. Since she insists only Thiago would be able to provide adequate information, I’d wait
for him then.
“Good. If you said you understood, you’d just become one of the numerous liars in my life. Nothing surprising or new,” I said, reaching for the doorknob. “Is there a key…” I added as I turned it and stared in fascination as the door opened, revealing a dimly lit living room.
I walked in slowly, my eyes darting around the place. The lamps glowing in the corners of the room gave it an ambiance that drew you in. The air smelled of “…Roses and something else,” Sonia said as I closed my eyes and inhaled. She gently closed the door behind her and walked past me to the center of the room.
07:21
Dancing into the Heart of Mr. Cad
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Chapter 60
“It’s beautiful,” I uttered, opening my eyes.
“What? You thought it’d be a torture room?” she asked with a sarcastic tone, and I chuckled in response, I walked towards the minibar in the corner of the room and stared at the bottles of wine, overwhelmed with nostalgia.
“Yeah, I had been expecting the worst. I’m always expecting the worst; it’s the only card life has thrown at me lately, so I just go around being…” I started to answer as she hummed a low tune.
“Pessimistic?” she interrupted, and I chuckled again. I tore my gaze away from the bar, walked towards a chair, and sat down.
“No. I like to think about it as being realistic; Murphy’s Law,” I replied, smiling wistfully.
She nodded in response and pointed to a door on her left. “I’ve got to show you around now. You look like a bath and some new clothes would do you a lot of good.”
“Is that a polite way of saying I look like a hot mess?” I asked, arching my eyebrow.
“Yes,” she said with a smile, and I grinned in response.
“Well, I can’t argue with that. Show me around then,” I answered, standing up.
“Enthusiasm, that’s new,” she remarked, and I rolled my eyes.
“It’s more curiosity than enthusiasm,” I retorted as she started walking towards the door. I followed her closely and watched as she produced a keycard from her pocket, swiped it against the door, and a small clicking sound echoed throughout the room.
“Potato, potato,” she answered, pushing the door open.
“That’s not how you…” I started to say, but the open door revealed the interior of the room, which distracted me.
While the walls of the living room were the same color as the hallway, these walls were white and brightly lit. Light bounced off everything as we stepped into the room. Sonia turned to me and stretched out her arm. “This is yours,” she said, handing me the keycard. “It opens all the doors in this house. Don’t lose it.”
“Only one key to open the doors? That’s not functional,” I quipped sarcastically, and she shrugged.
“Take it up with the management,” she answered, mirroring my tone, and I smirked as I took the card from her.
“Who? Thiago?” I inquired, and she nodded in response. “Good to know the mental list of questions I have for him keeps growing every minute,” I added, slipping the card into the robe pocket and following her around quietly as she showed me the other rooms in the apartment.
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