Chapter 55

Kate POV

Ava was every bit as clueless as I’d expected her to be. Or maybe she was pretending. Sitting across from her at the coffee shop, I could tell she had no idea what game I was playing. Her answers were simple, her stories about Kelly were things I ready knew. Yet, there were some piece of information buried beneath her bubbly chatter, small details that didn’t fit into the Kelly I thought I knew.

“You’re sure Kelly never mentioned me?” I pressed, stirring my cappuccino absently.

Ava blinked, her brow furrowing. “Not really. I mean, she’s private, you know? But she always said she had a complicated family. Why do you ask?”

I smiled thinly.

“Just curious. Family is important to me.”

It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the truth either. The words tasted like metal on my tongue. Ava didn’t need to know the depth of my curiosity or the reasons behind it. She was just another stepping stone, a means to an end. Another name in the notebook. Ano