Page 80 of Unexpected Complication

Sick—but better. Cell phone toast.

Do I want to know?

It’s feeding the fishes.

How appropriate. Have you left?

Soon.

Now.

OK.

Leave her your phone. I have another. You can call her.

Thanks.

It’s chipped. I’ll make sure she’s OK.

Good.

You have to leave.

I know.

I looked down at Skylar, smiling when I saw she was awake and looking at me. Her eyes were clearer, although she still looked tired.

“You have to go?”

I nodded, brushing my lips over her forehead. “I’ll leave this cell. Keep it with you at all times, okay?”

“Will you let me know you’re okay?”

“Yes. I’ll call you when I can.”

I hesitated. “I saw some new art in the kitchen. I loved them, Skylar.”

She smiled, a soft color highlighting her pale cheeks. “Oh. They’re just little ideas.”

I brushed my fingers down her cheek. “Your ‘little ideas’ fill me with hope.”

“They do?”

“You’re painting our future.”

She looked shy, and I knew I was right. I’d been back in the kitchen to get her more juice as she dozed and seen them. A house by the water, a bike lying on the lawn by the front door. A picnic laid out on a blanket, figures playing ball in the background. They were done with a deft hand and made me smile. I knew what they meant. She believed in me. In us. That we would move on from this and live our lives together. The soft color pictures meant more to me than she knew.

“I want you to paint more—we’ll hang them in our home.”

“Okay,” she said softly.

I hated the fact that I had to go, but I knew I had no choice.

I got up, reaching for my jacket. “Go with Frank and be safe for me.”

She sat up, the glimmer of tears in her eyes. “Come back to me, Cian.”

Cupping her cheek, I memorized her sweet face. “I will, Skylar. I swear it. This will all be over, and we’ll start a new life together. No more living on the streets for you, no more blood and death for me.”