Chapter 3

Callum's POV

"Callum, I'm sorry. But what's done is done. We can't change the past. All we can do is move forward. The firm has already told me they're promoting me to partner. Things are only going to get better for us from here."

"There's no 'us' anymore. We have nothing left to talk about."

With that, I ended the call.

By the time I got home, there was only one thought left on my mind—pack my things and get out of the place that held far too many memories.

The moment I opened the front door, I heard water running in the bathroom. Before I could make sense of it, the bathroom door swung open.

Steam spilled into the hallway, followed by laughter. Rowan stepped out first, shirtless, with a barely dressed Sabrina in his arms.

They were still laughing when they saw me standing by the door. Both of them froze.

"C-Callum?" Sabrina's eyes widened. She scrambled for the clothes she'd left on the couch and hurriedly covered herself. "What are you… Why are you back?"

Her voice came out strained as she desperately searched for an explanation. "This isn't what it looks like. Rowan's water heater broke, so he came over to use the shower. I was just… helping him wash his back."

I said nothing. I simply looked past them and walked into the bedroom. I opened the closet, pulled out my suitcase, and began packing my things, one shirt and one pair of pants at a time.

My movements were almost mechanical. There was nothing left here worth fighting for.

"Callum, let me explain." Sabrina followed me into the bedroom. The moment she saw the open suitcase, her tone changed.

"Where have you been the past few days? Why haven't you answered any of my calls? And now you're packing? What exactly are you trying to do?"

I ignored her and kept folding clothes into the suitcase as though she weren't even there.

By then, Rowan had gotten dressed. He appeared in the doorway, looking uncomfortable. "Sabrina, maybe I should just go. This is my fault. I didn't mean to upset anyone."

"You don't have to go." Sabrina caught his hand before he could leave, then turned a cold look on me. "Callum, haven't you taken this far enough? It was one case. How long are you planning to keep punishing everyone over it?"

Rowan went back to the living room and sat down on the couch.

Sabrina followed him, picked an apple from the fruit bowl, and carefully peeled and sliced it. Then she held a piece to his mouth. "Ignore him. He's always like this. Give him a little time, and he'll get over it."

Rowan took a bite. "I just don't want him getting the wrong idea about us."

"The wrong idea about what?" Sabrina laughed dismissively, deliberately raising her voice so I could hear. "Let him throw his tantrum. Give it three days, and he'll come crawling back. Where else is he going to go?"

I kept searching through the bedroom. There was one thing I couldn't leave without—the locket Mom had left me.

She'd given it to me shortly before she died when I was ten, and for the past 20 years, I'd treasured it more than anything I owned.

I searched one drawer after another. There was nothing. Then a familiar flash of green caught my eye.

I froze. The locket was hanging around Rowan's neck.

"My locket!" I rushed toward him and reached for it. "Give it back!"

Rowan immediately ducked behind Sabrina. His expression turned wounded. "Sabrina, didn't you say this was for me? You told me it was a token of—"

"Sabrina Voss, that belonged to my mother!"

Sabrina frowned and grabbed my wrist. "Callum, what is wrong with you? It's just an old locket. I'll buy you a better one."

I tore my arm free and reached for it again. In the struggle, the chain slipped from Rowan's neck. The locket hit the hardwood floor.

I stopped breathing. The locket I'd kept safe for 20 years, the only thing Mom had left me, shattered into several pieces at my feet.

For a moment, I could only stare. Then I dropped to my knees.

My hands shook as I reached for the broken pieces, but before I could gather them, Sabrina grabbed my arm and hauled me back up.

"Look what you've done!" she snapped. "Callum, you're getting more unreasonable by the day! Rowan was only borrowing it. Did you really have to make such a huge scene?"

Her voice grew sharper. "I already told you I'd go see your dad in a couple of days. What more do you want from me?"

I slowly raised my head. The tears I'd been holding back finally spilled over. "My dad is dead, Sabrina!"

My voice broke. "He's dead. You're never going to see him again!"