Semua Bab Gone Before We Reached Forever: Bab 11 - Bab 20

Kate's POVCaleb froze.When he heard that I had died three years ago, he realized that was the year he had paid me to disappear from his life for good."That can't be. Kate said she was going to find Claire's grandparents. How could she be dead?" he asked.Margot looked at him with pity. "Kate's parents had already died. She had no one when she came here, and she had a baby with a heart condition. She worked herself sick trying to pay for Claire's treatment, but she had no money to get herself treated."Lauren clasped her hands over her mouth."Before she died, she entrusted Claire to me, then asked me to take care of her funeral arrangements," Margot continued. "I felt sorry for her, so I agreed."Margot glanced at Claire's sweet smile and started to cry. "When Kate died, Claire was still sleeping in her arms. We tried to take Kate away, but Claire wouldn't let us. She kept saying her mommy was just asleep."It took us a long time trying to comfort her. We told her Kate had t

Kate's POVThe year I left Caleb, Dad was murdered by a ruthless killer. Mom lost her mind and died six months later.I was left alone, living in the slums.Caleb's breath caught when he saw the killer's face.He recognized that face. It was the very man who had destroyed the Steele family.At the time, Caleb was the only Steele left in the country, and he had fallen ill too.The killer tried to lure Caleb out by coming to my home to kidnap me.That was a day I would never forget.I stayed at the hospital with Caleb until that night. When I got home, I found Mom and Dad lying in pools of blood.I tried to run, but the killer grabbed me by the leg and dragged me back.He took my phone and texted Caleb, telling him to come to my house.Caleb came just as he had been told.The killer held a knife to my back and forced me to lure Caleb upstairs.I stood by the window and said cruel things to drive Caleb away, enraging the killer.Just as he raised his knife to kill me, Mom wo

Kate's POVCaleb took Claire home.Sure enough, he was good at taking care of her.Under his loving care, Claire grew healthy and rosy-cheeked.I was so relieved. I knew I had been right to want to leave her in his care.Lauren came to see Claire often, always bringing bags full of gifts.She would always stroke Claire's hair with a guilty look. "I'm sorry I said those things about your mom."Claire forgave her without a second thought. "It's okay. Mommy says you're a good person if you admit when you're wrong and make it right."Lauren's eyes welled up with tears again.Caleb contacted Margot and asked where I had been laid to rest.He learned that because I couldn't afford a burial plot, my ashes had been placed in a columbarium.The day he went to bring me home, he stood outside the columbarium alone for a long time.The attendant finally urged him, "Sir, will you be taking it home? We're closing soon."Only then did Caleb finally step inside.His hands shook badly as

Kate's POVCaleb pulled away from Lauren and stumbled into the backyard.He went to my grave and frantically searched through what I had left behind.There wasn't much.All that was left was a little wooden box, an old couch, and a letter.He searched through everything again and again, his voice full of hurt. "You didn't leave anything for me? Not even a single word? Kate, how could you be so cruel?"You wrote a letter to Claire. Why didn't you write one to me? Do you hate me? You do, don't you?"You can hate me, and you can even curse at me. Just come back and yell at me!"He fell to his knees in front of my grave and slammed his forehead against the ground until it started bleeding.Lauren cried as she tried to pull him up. "Caleb, please get up! Claire is still inside. What if she sees you like this?"Caleb went completely still.He slowly raised his head, a trace of clarity returning to his eyes.Lauren bit her lip, her voice trembling. "Caleb, if Kate saw you like thi

Caleb's POVKate called me!It was 1:00 am when my phone lit up. Her name flashed on the screen.I shot up in bed, my heart pounding. I stared at her name for a full minute.My hands were shaking. I meant to hit decline, but my finger slipped, and I answered instead.She didn't say anything, and neither did I.The two of us sat in silence.I could hear someone breathing softly on the other end. The breaths were faint and weak.I should have hung up, but I couldn't bring myself to press the button.I told myself I only wanted to see what she was up to this time. I wasn't thinking about her.But it was Kate's daughter who spoke. Her voice was so cute, soft, and sweet when she called me "Mister".She asked me when I was going to bring her some food. She was hungry.I froze for a moment. How old was this kid? Judging by her voice, she must've been, what, four or five?Was no one with her? Why was she alone in the middle of the night? Where was Kate?I asked where her mother w