Chapter 199

That question squeezed two stiff words out of him through gritted teeth: "Goodbye." Louise didn't even glance back. She walked away briskly, like she couldn't be bothered to pause. Neither of them reached out over the following days. Total radio silence. Sometimes, when Louise thought about what Ava said on the cable car that day, she'd get this frustrated, "seriously-why-aren't-you-doing-better" kind of feeling. Living at the Ellis house because of Mr. Ellis Sr. had always felt a bit awkward to her-like staying in someone else's space. Not much privacy, not totally comfortable. So she'd started hanging around the office longer after work. Just to avoid going back to that quiet space. Things had fallen into a calm, borderline boring rhythm... until something at UL required Dominic to go on a two-week business trip. Back at home, the only time Louise felt even a sliver of life in the place was when Dominic was around. Now that he was about to leave too, she lay face-down on the bed, wat