Chapter 17

In the end, Cass and I don’t go drinking or shopping. There’s a limit to how much alcohol I should drink if I want to keep feeling safe with Marcus. And while I could hide under a costume, I decide I can always trust the tiny but bright flame now tattooed on the side of my left breast.

So when Zee calls Cass to invite her to spend the afternoon watching TV on the couch, I don’t mind parting ways.

It’s not even six o’clock, and I’m already home. As I take the elevator up to my third-floor apartment, I’m glad to have more time than I expected. Marcus said he’d pick me up at eight, so I have two hours to relax—and, I hope, make peace with my decision.

I enter my passcode on the panel, hear the familiar squeal of the locks, and open the door. Despite the mountains of packing boxes cluttering my living room, my mood immedia