Chapter 63

Lorenzo and I haven’t spoken much since our rather jarring conversation in the car last night. He demanded that I take a break from working on the case and I thought he was utterly insane for forcing me to do so. But, he was right.

I did need a break—from the case, from the house, and perhaps even him.

It wasn’t as though I was angry with him or didn’t care about Lorenzo. In fact, it was the total opposite. After he and I finally settled in for the night, I was able to truly sort through most of my thoughts and feelings.

I was devastated about Lucy Grant. Seeing her lying on that metal table with her light blonde hair flowing around her lifeless face and shoulders, tore my heart right in half. It was like looking at a fallen angel.

But amongst my pain and my tears, Lorenzo was the one who tried to hold me together as I felt myself crumbling apart. He held me close in his arms and tried to pull me back from the mental edge.

Perhaps with this much-needed break, I would be able to return with a clearer mind and hopefully a better perspective on how we should proceed further.

So, the following morning, I’d gotten up and sent a text out to my close friend Adeline, whom I hadn’t seen in months. Adeline got back to me and agreed to meet me at a cafe located specifically between Blue Moon and Black Moon.

‘The last thing I needed to worry about was accidentally overstepping into someone else’s territory,’ I thought to myself.

I went ahead and saved us a small table in the far corner of the place. No more than five minutes went by before I saw Adeline’s familiar face smile in my direction. I practically shot up from my seat and rushed over to greet her.

“Oh my God!” I exclaimed. “How are you?”

We threw our arms around one another and hugged each other tight.

“Me?” she giggled. “Who the hell cares what’s going on in my life? You’re the one whose face has been plastered all over the city!”

I rolled my eyes and sighed and guided us back over to our table. We put in our orders to the waitress and sat back in our chairs.

“No, no. But in all seriousness, I’m doing alright,” Adeline said. “Work has been boring but what else is new?”

As mundane as it seemed, I really missed our meetings like this. For the next hour, Adeline went on to fill me in about her work as well as this new guy she’d been talking to recently. She seemed happy, and carefree.

I was secretly envious of her for it. Soon the conversation turned on me and now I’d become the center topic of our meeting.

“You’ve got to tell me, Eleanor,” Adeline said with wide, wondrous eyes. “What's it like living with Lorenzo as his Luna? How are those in Black Moon treating you?”

A slight blush touched my cheeks. My heart gently swelled at the thought of how incredible my life had become since moving in with Lorenzo, all things considered.

“It’s been...Very interesting to say the least,” I started. “Lorenzo, Oh my God, where do I begin? He’s been amazing. Don’t get me wrong, it was a bit strained at first. I really didn’t know if I could trust him, but as time went on it honestly felt like he and I never broke things off in the first place.”

Adeline leaned on her hand and smiled. “That’s great, Ella. Now, tell me, how is he in bed?”

My eyes grew wide, causing me to almost choke on my iced tea. “Jesus, Adeline!”

“Come on! Humor me, will you?” she laughed.

I knew my face was as red as a tomato at that point. “If I tell you that it’s completely mind-blowing, would that be enough?”

Adeline squealed with jovial excitement. “I’ll allow it, for now.”

Unfortunately, the conversation started to take a darker turn. Of course, I should have known that Adeline would want to inquire about the missing children case. I just wasn’t prepared for the overwhelming feelings that came along with it.

“Lorenzo’s been so supportive and helping me along through everything,” I told her. “I just never believed that things were going to end up so twisted and dark.”

Adeline reached out to rest her hand over mine. “Eleanor, you’ve been doing more for those girls than anyone has since when the first went missing.”

My eyes started to gloss over with tears. I wanted so badly to believe her. But there was truly no amount of hope that was capable of bringing back Agatha Wilde or Lacy Grant.

“I just feel like a failure,” I said.

“Eleanor, don’t you dare feel that way. There is no way that you're a failure. Do you hear me? I told you before, that what you’ve been doing in order to solve this case and help these girls is more than anyone has ever been able to do.”

It warmed me to know that I had at least two people standing in my corner, wanting to support me through all of this.

“Well, isn’t this a pleasant surprise?” a deep familiar voice spoke out.

My stomach dropped. I tore my gaze away from Adeline to find Cruz standing no more than six feet away from our table. My throat went instantly dry and my hands threatened to curl into tight fists.

I tried to keep my expression as passive and calm as possible.

“Adeline, it’s been great catching up, we need to remember to do this more often,” I told her.

Thankfully, my best friend was quick to catch on to my situation. She gave a slight nod and a smile before promising to give me a call later. The moment she left, Cruz was quick to take her place at the table.

“Hello, Mr. Sterling,” I said curtly.

The corner of his mouth curved into an unsettling smile. “Miss Wright, you look lovely.”

“What brings you to this ‘specific’ cafe today?” I asked tensely.

His smile deepened. “No particular reason. Thought I could use some fresh air. I’ve been keeping up with the news, you know? Such a shame about those girls they’ve been finding...”