Chapter 19

Matthew froze for a moment before taking the file with stiff fingers. As he flipped through the pages, his face darkened. His hands trembled slightly, and his voice wavered with disbelief. "T-This can't be real." Sasha leaned in for a glance, and the color drained from her face at once. Her body swayed. She was barely able to stay upright. … In the emergency room, Fabian hovered between life and death. Images of Valerie flashed through his fading consciousness. Clad in a white dress, she stood in the sunlight while smiling brightly. She curled up in his arms, and her voice was as soft and sweet as honey. She looked at him through the glass in prison, and her eyes were filled with despair and loneliness. "Val..." His voice was barely a whisper. A tear slipped down his cheek, soaking into the pillow beneath him. He couldn't believe Valerie was gone. He couldn't believe the years he'd spent hating her had all been for nothing. From the very start, Valerie had been protecting him a