Page 44 of The Billion Heirs Boxed Set

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From Bayfield, Montana. The place where nothing happens to anyone. Except me.

So much is still a mystery—who took me and how I got to the island—but at least Derek Wolfe is dead and his kids shut down his vicious trafficking enterprise. Most of the men who went there are either in prison or have disappeared—having fled the country. It’s over.

No reason to fear for my life here. Not today. Objectively, I know this.

I draw in a deep breath. The smoky fragrance of the bacon wafts into me, and my stomach actually growls a little. I’ve always loved bacon.

Maybe I will take a bite of my sandwich, but first…

I have to go to the ladies room.

I have to face the place where I was abducted.

That’s the main reason for coming back to Millie’s.

You have to know that you’re safe there, Carly, Dr. Lake says.

But I wasn’t safe there.

Not then. But you are now.

I stand.

Emma hurries over, worry etched on her aged face. “Do you need something?”

“Just going to pee, Emma,” I say.

“Oh.” Her cheeks redden. “Sorry.”

Yes, it would be nice to be able to do so without the entire diner feeling like I may vanish if they don’t keep their eyes trained on me at all times.

I walk slowly, my heart rattling in my chest, toward the ladies’ room near the back of the diner.

The back door.

The door I was carried out of.

It looms in the distance, not seeming to get any nearer until I almost run into it.

To my right is the door to the bathroom.

I turn and push it open.

The pungent scent of fruity air freshener assaults me. It’s a small bathroom with only two stalls. I was in the second one when…

I draw in another breath to calm my racing heart and push the door to the stall open—

“Hey!” A woman inside slams the door closed.

I jump, panicked and embarrassed at the same time.

“Oh God! I’m sorry.”

“Didn’t you see my legs?”

“I…wasn’t looking. Why didn’t you lock the door?”

“The lock doesn’t work.”

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