Chapter 12

Baxter froze, his hands falling limply to his sides. He was stunned. His complexion turned pale, as if all the blood in his body had stopped flowing. His heart clenched in pain, suffocating him. The morgue? Vanessa was dead? He refused to believe it. Ignoring the burns on his back, he threw off the blanket and staggered to the morgue. The moment he stepped inside, he saw a body. He trembled, then stumbled forward and slowly reached out to lift the white sheet covering it. A burned face came into view. He was shocked by the sight that his knees went weak. With one hand braced against the autopsy table, he reached out with the other, trembling as his fingers brushed the face. Though most of the skin was burned, the features were still painfully familiar to him. There was no doubt that it was Vanessa. Baxter's legs gave out, and he sank to the floor. Overwhelmed by the shock, he bent over and vomited. The bile in his stomach churned violently, leaving him clutching his abdomen i