Page 57 of Little Empty Promises

“I believe it will allow me to move on and not be stuck here, in a purgatory of sorts.I’m ready to be rid of this place, to be reunited with Milton.The sooner, the better.”

“So you know you’re … that you are …”

“Spit it out, dear.I’m dead.”

“You were murdered in the library.Do you know who killed you?”

“If I gave you the answers you seek, it would take all the fun out of you figuring it out for yourself, now wouldn’t it?”

I supposed it was the reason my questions were never answered in dreams of this kind, and I doubted they ever would be.

“Have you any suspects?”she asked.

“I’ve started questioning people.Do you have any advice for me?”

“Advice can be tricky once you’ve left one place for another.Let me see … I suppose I don’t have any advice.I was scared, you know, at the end.It’s true what they say about your life flashing before you before you die.Except my visions were of every fond memory Milton and I ever shared together.It was beautiful, and it alleviated my fear.”

“Why were you keeping an eye on your neighbors before you died?”

“Someone needs to look out for those who can’t look out for themselves.”

“Are you referring to Rosalyn or Kayla?”

“You tell me.Was it Rosalyn, or Kayla, or someone else—someone you haven’t considered yet?”

“Did you see something you shouldn’t have?Is it the reason you’re dead?”

“I’ve seen lots of things in my day.I guess I got a little tired of it in the end—sitting back, doing nothing.It’s what’s wrong with society, and I played a part.We see things, and we turn away because we think we’re weak.We think we’re better off letting someone else step in or not doing a single thing.It wasn’t right of me, not right at all.”

“What did you see, Cordelia?What secrets were you hiding?”

She turned away from me, yawning as she said, “You’re keeping me, you know.Keeping me from my Marlon.You don’t need my help to find the answers you seek.Trust yourself.You’ll find your way.”

“Wait, please.Can I have a minute, just one more minute?”

As the words left my lips, she started to fade.

“Don’t go,” I said.“Not yet.”

“I must.I’ll leave you with this … Things aren’t black or white.People have a reason for the choices they make sometimes.You’d do well to remember that.”

24

The following morning, I was sitting on the couch at work, filling Simone and Hunter in on the evening I’d had.When I got to the part about Seth, I realized how much I wanted to believe he was a good person—a troubled person, but a good one.I wanted to believe Seth and Kayla werebothgood people.

But was it clouding my judgment?

Part of what Seth had said to me the previous night was so precise, it almost sounded scripted, like he’d memorized it.I’d spent the morning creating a scenario in my head of what might have happened once I left their house.Kayla had told him about our conversation, what we’d talked about before he’d arrived home.Once Seth learned Cordelia may have witnessed a handful of uncomfortable interactions between him and Kayla, they formed a plan to make me believe they were innocent.A plan that removed all suspicion from them and put it on … well, anyone else, as long as they weren’t the focal point.

A scenario, at least.

Seth wanted me to believe Cordelia was his friend, which was a bit odd, but not so odd that it was unbelievable.He’d claimed he checked in on her on multiple occasions.They chatted about books.He asked if there was anything she needed.And most of all, right before she died, she almost confided in him.

I couldn’t decide whether his story was the full truth, a partial truth, or not much of the truth at all.There was no one to back it up, except his wife.A wife who could have been protecting him as well as herself.She was the protective type.

“Hey, Georgiana, come in … over,” Simone said with a laugh, snapping her fingers in front of my face.“Wherever you are, you’re no longer here with us.”

“I’m sorry,” I said.“Seth’s visit last night has been weighing on my mind.I’m not sure what I think about it.My head and my heart, or should I say, my emotions are at odds.”

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