Chapter51: Chapter 51

Chapter 51 CELESTE I woke to the pale morning light filtering through our bedroom curtains, my hand automatically reaching across the bed only to find cool, empty sheets where Xenois should have been. The disappointment hit me immediately, followed by a wave of guilt that settled in my chest like a stone. I had done this to myself. My evasiveness last night, my refusal to let him in, had driven yet another wedge between us. I could still see the hurt in his eyes when I'd pulled away from his questions, the way his jaw had tightened when I'd insisted on handling my own problems. He'd been trying to be a partner, a husband, and I'd shut him out completely. But what choice did I have? How could I possibly explain to the man I loved that his wife ran what appeared to be a sophisticated escort service? That she regularly attended human trafficking auctions, bidding on human lives like they were commodities? That she moved in a world of criminals and predators, pretending to be one of them i