Chapter 512

Olivia

I took a deep breath to steel myself before I stepped into the quiet cafe. It was still fairly early in the morning, and the sun had just begun to warm the terracotta tiles of the small space. I looked around for Clarissa, but she hadn’t arrived yet, so I ordered a coffee and took a seat by the window while I waited for her.

As I waited, I nervously smoothed down my dress and sat up a little straighter.

I couldn’t entirely explain why the meeting with Clarissa had me on edge like this. Maybe it was because her husband had made it abundantly clear that I was meant to stay away from her.

Or maybe it was because part of me wondered if she had information on Nathan’s cheating—and how it was connected to Dan, which I was certain it was.

Or maybe it was both.

Suddenly, the sound of the chime tinkling on the door caught my attention. I felt my heart pound just a touch harder in my chest as I looked up and saw her coming in.

She stopped there for a moment in the doorway, her silhouette outlined by the sun, before she briskly began walking toward me.

“Clarissa,” I breathed, standing and causing my chair to scrape loudly against the floor.

It happened again. I couldn’t explain it, but seeing her for the first time after my son’s funeral and after what had happened with Nathan made me do it. Without a word, I rushed toward her and into her arms. And she did the same.

“Oh, Olivia.” Clarissa held me, her hand rubbing large circles on my back as we stood there in the middle of the small cafe. Neither of us spoke for a long time; we just hugged there, slowly swaying back and forth.

I felt the irresistible urge to cry again, and there was no stopping it. The tears leaked out no matter how hard I tried to keep them in.

When we finally pulled away, I quickly dabbed at my eyes with my handkerchief and forced a tense smile.

“I’m so sorry,” I said with a wry chuckle. “I don’t know what came over me.”

“Olivia.” Clarissa took my hand and gave it a squeeze, causing more tears to mist over my eyes. “It’s okay. I think we both needed that.”

Clarissa ordered her coffee, and once we were both seated, we sat in silence for a moment before I was the first to speak.

“So,” I said, gripping the mug of coffee in front of me with both hands, “what did you want to talk about?”

Clarissa drew in a deep, shuddering breath. “Well, um… First and foremost,” she said softly, “I am so, so sorry about the funeral.”

I swallowed as I remembered that day; I hadn’t been as composed as I would have liked to have been, and the words I had shouted out to Dan from across the driveway still haunted me. But what haunted me even more was the frightened look in Clarissa’s eyes that day.

“I, uh… I’ll admit that I said some things I shouldn’t have,” I whispered. “And I’m sorry for that. You see, I had this idea in my head that my son’s death was somehow Dan’s fault, because he came to the house the day that it happened. But I know that I was just searching for someone to be angry with.”

Clarissa reached across the table and gave my hand a squeeze. “I understand,” she replied. “If I had been in your position, I likely would have done the same.”

My gaze fell down to my coffee cup. I stared at it for a while, watching as the tiny bubbles in my cappuccino foam popped one by one. “Was… Was there something else you wanted to talk about?” I finally asked after several long moments of silence.

Slowly, Clarissa withdrew her hand. When I looked up at her, she was staring beyond me out the window, her eyes darting back and forth as though searching for the right words.

“Ever since that day,” she finally said, “I’ve wondered about… us. About you and me, Olivia. Or rather, more specifically, about your mother.”

I raised an eyebrow. “My mother?”

Clarissa nodded. “I know this may come across as strange, but I feel as though there’s a connection between us,” she explained. “And I don’t know much about my past, you see.”

“You don’t?” I asked, involuntarily leaning forward a little. “Why not?”

“Well…” Clarissa paused, staring down at her own coffee cup now. “I suffered a severe head injury a while back. I developed amnesia because of it; I can’t remember anything prior to the last decade or so.”

I blinked, completely taken aback. All this time, Clarissa had been walking around with amnesia and had never mentioned it. “Oh, I’m so sorry,” I said gently. “I had no idea.”

Clarissa shook her head and shot me a sad smile. “It’s alright, really. But it does leave a lot of questions unanswered. And given our connection, I can’t help but wonder if you may be some sort of link to my past.”

“My mother,” I said as it began to dawn on me. “You think maybe you’re related to her, somehow?”

“Perhaps.” She nodded. “I figured, given our similarities in appearance and being mistaken for your mother, that maybe I am a cousin of hers. Unless she had any sisters that you’re unaware of?”

I furrowed my brow. I hadn’t known about Freya, so I supposed that it wasn’t entirely impossible. But Clarissa practically could have been my mother’s twin, aside from a few small differences.

“Look,” she said. “I know it’s crazy. And if it’s not something you wish to delve into—”

“No.” I shook my head, meeting her gaze again. “I’ve felt the connection too, Freya. And if I can help you in any way, I’d love to.”

Clarissa’s face split into a smile and her shoulders sagged with relief. “Oh, thank you,” she said. “But I’m afraid I don’t know where to begin.”

I chewed my lip for a moment, thinking. Freya, once again, came to mind.

“My mother did have one sister, Freya,” I said. “I don’t know where she is right now, but I was actually planning on finding her for…” I paused, swallowing. “Personal reasons. Maybe I could learn something from her, and I’ll let you know.”

Clarissa’s eyes lit up. “You’d do that?” she asked.

I nodded. “Yes. Maybe you two could even meet. She’s incredibly wise, and used to be an Elder of our pack; I’m sure she’d know something, assuming there’s anything to know.”

“Thank you so much, Olivia,” Clarissa said, squeezing my hand again. “I don’t know how to make it up to you.”

For a moment, I just looked at her, thinking. And then it hit me; I had hoped, in a strange sort of way, that she had some kind of information for me in regards to Nathan.

“Tell me,” I said, inhaling sharply. “Has Nathan been spending a lot of time with your husband lately?”

Clarissa furrowed her brow and shook her head. “Not as far as I know,” she said. “Not outside of work, at least.”

“So he hasn’t been to your house?”

“No.” She shook her head again, and the sincere look in her eyes told me that she was telling the truth.

I nodded, letting out a soft sigh. “That’s all I had to ask you,” I said quietly. It was then that I noticed the buzz of my phone in my pocket. “Excuse me for one moment.”

Slipping my phone out of my pocket, I unlocked the screen and felt my heart sink when I saw a text from Nathan waiting for me.

“I’ll be coming to pick up my things this afternoon. Can we talk then?”