Page 57 of The Quiet Witness

If he knew Kate at all, it was a solid possibility.

But all had been quiet. Suspiciously so.

Ever since their tense argument in the car, Kate had been acting… different. He’d tried to get a conversation going. Asked her if she wanted something to eat. He’d even gone as far as to invite her out on a walk. The answer, a curt no.

Almost as if she had given up and retreated into a shell of silence. Almost, because he wouldn’t put it past her to lower his defences. Acting the part. If anything, he expected it.

Nonetheless, it had been difficult. Saddening even. Witnessing the resignation set in after telling her there was no plan in place where he would let her go. Filling her with a false sense of hope would achieve nothing. Still, it gnawed on his insides.

Set him on edge.

He thoroughly missed the moments where she had been challenging him. The defiant set of her chin, eyes ablaze. That had been interesting.

This strange silence hanging in every room of the house… yes, being gone for a couple of days had at least given him the opportunity to unwind a bit.

If only he had been able to keep his mind from circling back to the woman in his house.

It should not mean that much to him.

He rolled up to the house. Eyebrows joining together into a frown. There was music… blasting from the speakers. Now, that was a first.

Lucien walked up the creaking steps, twisted the keys into the lock, and stepped into the house that had apparently become a place of karaoke.

Katherine’s voice carried over the music. With the ease of a practiced singer, she sang along to the lyrics with a passion many would envy.

With a smirk he leaned against the wall. Either she had been acting, or she had enjoyed the days without him.

It didn’t matter. At least the silence had been broken.

He ought to check the cameras more often. Who knew how often she held these solo concerts.

The song, Alicia Keys with ‘Girl On Fire’, came to an end. How befitting.

A laugh split the seconds of silence. Curious, he peeked behind the wall. Ghost had his huge front paws in Kate’s hands. With the laugh of a child, she pulled him into… a dance, hobbling across the living room together.

His lips split into a grin. Catching glimpses of her in this state. It lightened the load that had been weighing on his heart for days.

Prancing over to the kitchen, she kept singing along with the lyrics of the next song. Katy Perry’s ‘Roar.’ Yep, she definitely put on some feel good vibes with these tracks.

He made no move to push away from the wall. Instead, he kept a pleased eye on her as she rummaged through the cupboards.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ghost pad over to him, tongue lolling out of his huge mouth. Not quite yet. He lowered a flat hand, murmuring softly. “Stay.”

With a satisfied nod, Kate found what she was looking for. Holding a glass jar of tomato sauce. A frown took over her joyous face as she twisted and turned on the iron lid of the jar. She took a towel, and pulled, and pulled. But it wouldn’t budge. With a sigh of exasperation, she put it on the counter, staring at it, as if her angry scowl itself would force it open.

Time to take her out of her misery.

“You’ve been keeping those singing skills under a tight lid. Almost as tight as that jar, I’d say.”

Kate leapt in the air, her squeal making him wince. She whipped around to find him staring at her in the doorway. “Oh, by the Gods, Lucien!” Hand on her heart, she sighed heavily. “Don’t scare me like that. Unless you want me to die of a heart attack.”

He couldn’t stop the sly smile from forming on his face. “You look pretty alive.”

“Not thanks to you.” Her glare turned sour. “Or maybe it is. Whatever.” Another sigh. “I guess you know the difference between the living and the dead.”

Putting his hands in his pockets, he said. “You’re changing the subject.”

“Oh yeah, what subject was that?”