Without waiting for us, Xavier strode toward the manor.
With Julius’s help, I took small, agonizing steps, each one a monumental effort.
But even as I struggled, Sylus could not wait. His voice barked through Julius’s phone, impatient and irritated. “Hurry up, Julius. Charlotte will fall asleep again soon, and I don’t want to waste time.”
Julius hesitated, his gaze flickering with something he wanted to say, but held back.
I bit my lip, too drained to speak, and instead focused on keeping pace with the quickening steps. Each painful step forward felt like one step closer to the end of my life with Sylus.
As I stepped into the bedroom, I froze at the sight before me.
There, on the bed I used to share with Sylus, sat someone similar to me named Charlotte. Her eyes sparkling with joy as she played with the very pearl Xavier had so callously dug out of my stomach.
She twirled it between her fingers, the delicate pendant that had once adorned her childhood necklace.
That pearl was not just any trinket; it was Charlotte’s family heirloom, a pendant she had worn as a charm for as long as anyone could remember.