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CHAPTER 11

Author: Universeleap
last update publish date: 2025-11-26 18:27:14

The silence in the house after Jake left was a living thing. It was heavy and thick, full of the things that hadn’t happened and the terror of what still might.

I spent the day cleaning spots that were already clean, my skin still crawling with the ghost of rough hands and the cold disgust of my own fear.

The blue nightgown was a crumpled pile at the bottom of the hamper, a shameful secret hidden under other clothes.

When Matt’s key turned in the lock that night, my whole body went rigid.

I
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