Chapter 50
The silence of the night hung heavy in the air as Valerie stepped into her apartment, exhaustion weighing down on her every step. The day had been long—between dealing with the antiques, meeting with various people, and trying to keep her mind off the tumultuous emotions she felt regarding Houston, it had all drained her.
She hadn’t expected to feel so lost in Washington D.C., but here she was, in a place that once felt like a fresh start, now overshadowed by a sense of emptiness.
As she walked into her living room, her phone buzzed on the coffee table. Glancing at it, she saw an unfamiliar number flashing on the screen. Her heart skipped a beat as she thought back to Roderick’s warning about strange phone calls.
“Could it be another scammer?” she muttered under her breath. But she picked up anyway, her curiosity getting the best of her.
“Hello?”
“Valerie,” a cold, familiar voice answered. It was Terrence.
Her pulse quickened, though she immediately tried to steady herself. “What do you want?” she asked, her tone clipped, trying to hide the sharp sting of emotions she still couldn’t completely control.
Terrence’s voice, though steady, carried a weight of frustration. “I need you to come back to Houston. There are things we need to discuss.”
Valerie’s grip on the phone tightened. “I’ve made my decision, Terrence. I’m not coming back.”
Terrence was silent for a moment, but Valerie could almost feel the tension rise from his side of the call. “You think you can just leave everything behind? You can’t run away from this, Valerie.”
“I’m not running,” she said, her voice low but firm. “I’m just moving on.”
The line went quiet, and Valerie closed her eyes, feeling a cold pang in her chest. She hated how much this conversation still affected her.
“Are you happy, then?” Terrence asked, his voice softer now, tinged with something she couldn’t quite place.
Valerie didn’t answer immediately. The question hung between them like a weight. Finally, she sighed, the sound almost lost in the stillness. “I don’t know yet. But I have to try.”
Before Terrence could say anything else, she ended the call, her heart heavy with the decision she’d just made.
She stared at the phone in her hand for a moment, wondering if she was really making the right choice. But no matter how many times she asked herself, the answer didn’t change. She had to find her own path, far from the shadows of the past.
With a heavy sigh, she put the phone down and walked over to the window, looking out over the city. For the first time in a long while, she felt a small flicker of hope that maybe, just maybe, this new chapter could lead her to the peace she had been searching for.
But deep down, she knew Terrence wouldn’t let go so easily. And no matter how far she ran, a part of her would always be tethered to him.
