I flinched.
As much as I appreciated Cassie taking in more rescues, the fear that she’d be killed like Della hissed in the back of my mind. “What are you saying?”
“I don’t really know.” She groaned. “I shouldn’t be asking this of you. You don’t have any obligation to my family and after all the time that’s passed after…after Della dying and Jacob leaving…I don’t feel right. But…” Tears caught in her throat. “My dad isn’t doing well. He’s frail, Hope. He’s no longer the big bear we all know and love. I’m so afraid he’s going to pass before Jacob gets home. Jacob needs to say goodbye to his grandfather. Otherwise, it will chew him alive. It might be the last straw he needs before going completely crazy.”
Tears welled. “You want me to find him.”
“Yes.”
“But…he doesn’t want to see me. Not after—”
“His mother had just died, and you had a cough. Two things he couldn’t cope with. Lots of time has passed. If you find him, I have no doubt he’ll be happy to see you.”
“I’m not so sure.”
“I am.” She paused, before saying softly, “He needs you, Hope. He needed you right from the start.”
My eyes trailed to the bedroom where Michael slept peacefully. He trusted I was his girl. That he had my heart just as I had his. What sort of person was I if I contemplated running around the world to find a boy who’d shattered me instead of staying with the one who cared?
“I can tell him about John for you, but…I’ve moved on. There isn’t room for an us anymore. I’m with Michael. I can’t hurt or betray him.”
“I’m not asking you to.”
I had no reply.
“I understand this isn’t easy.” Cassie sighed. “I know how much you cared for Jacob. And I understand he pushed you away too much to earn a second chance. Just…find him and tell him to come home. That’s all.”
That’s all?
That wasn’t all.
That was just the beginning.
Say no.
Don’t do it.
But Della wasn’t here to save her son.
And I was.
My heart pounded as I whispered, “Okay, Cassie. I’ll try.”
“Oh, thank you, Hope. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
“Send me the address, and I’ll fly there.”
“You’re an angel.”
“I’m not an angel. Far from it.”
“Well, you are to me. And to Della and Ren who will be watching their son ruin his life somewhere on a tropical island.”
“What if he’s found happiness? He might be with someone and living contentedly on a beach somewhere for all you know.”
“He’s not,” Cassie muttered. “His letters are dripping in pain. It’s what he doesn’t write that tells the truth and…”
“And?”
“He’s getting worse.”
“How so?”
“He’s…” She groaned softly. “He’s fading. If that makes sense? I don’t know how to explain it. But the time alone hasn’t done him any favours. His letters sound empty.”
I gulped. “I’ll book the tickets tonight.”
“Thank you.” Cassie’s voice dropped. “Come visit us soon, okay? We miss you.”
I hung up, unable to accept such an excruciating invitation.
Cassie had thanked me from the bottom of her heart.
But what about my heart?
What about that?
What about the mess this would cause, and the inevitable hurt Jacob would give me?
CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
Hope
* * * * * *
“YOU HAVE TO leave now? Like right now, right now?” Michael yawned as he sat at the kitchen table and smiled gratefully at the bacon and egg bagel I’d made him. He blew me a kiss before taking a sip of his coffee.
“I’ve already booked a flight and cleared a few days with work. It’s a family emergency. I wouldn’t go if it wasn’t urgent.”
“It’s urgent because you need to tell this guy his grandfather is dying?”
My heart sank, miserable and moping. “Yes.”
“But his own family can’t pick up a phone and tell him?”
“He hasn’t got a phone—not answering his old number anyway. He’s not on social media. There’s not even a guarantee he’ll still be at this hotel by the time I get there. But I have to try.” I washed my hands in the sink from my own breakfast and eyed my suitcase by the door.
It hurt to admit, but I’d packed every stitch of my belongings—not just the necessities I needed to travel. I’d spent long enough living unofficially with Michael to be blasé about leaving stuff. An odd bra, a pair of mismatched socks. A dress or two.
However, in the inky dawn with Cassie’s voice still in my head, I’d searched the apartment for any trace of me.
I’d stuffed it all into the suitcase.
I didn’t leave a trace.
What did that say about me?
What were my intentions?
Was I saying goodbye to Michael?
Was I playing with fire that wouldn’t just burn me, but char me to dust?
Since talking with Cassie, I’d managed to book a flight to Bali leaving this afternoon, arranged a room at the same hotel where Jacob sent the letter from, and emailed work that I could still do script edits and amendments, but I’d be out of the country for a few days.