"I will. I promise."
"Good." Another pause, his voice going drowsy. "And after—when it's over—we're getting that flour. I want to see if her vision comes true."
"You really want me to throw flour at you?"
"If it means we made it to that future? Absolutely." I could hear the smile in his voice. "Throw all the flour you want."
My heart swelled. "Deal."
His breathing had started to even out, going slow and deep. I listened to it, let it anchor me, chase away the fear.
We were going to be okay.
We had to be.
Because I wasn't done with him either.
Not even close.
"Goodnight, Quentin," I whispered.
"Mm. Night, Julia." His words were barely coherent now. "Love you."
"Love you too."
I kept the phone to my ear long after he'd fallen asleep, listening to his breathing, feeling less alone than I had all day.
The next few days would bring danger. Fear. Maybe blood.
But tonight, there was this.
The quiet intimacy of two people trying to find their way to each other through the darkness.
And somehow, that was enough.
I closed my eyes, finally feeling sleep pull at me.
Tomorrow, we'd face the danger. Together.
Tonight, we'd rest. Together, even if we were miles apart.
My last thought before drifting off was of flour and laughter and a future that might actually be possible.
If we survived.
Whenwe survived.
Because failure wasn't an option anymore.
Not when I finally had something—someone—worth fighting for.
Chapter 33
Julia
Tuesday morning, I hurried to get ready for work. After our intimate phone call the night before, I couldn’t wait to see Quentin today. The only thing that ruined my mood was realizing we only had five days left to prove Quentin’s innocence.
I arrived at the office and hurried to Quentin’s door. I found him on the phone, pacing by the windows. "—no, I understand. Yes. Seven should work but I’ll have to check with the team. Thank you, Isobel."
