Page 4 of Let Her Live

Even if Joslyn's disappearance wasn't related to Julia's death, Fiona had to admit, she'd become engrossed in this case too. Julia's family deserved closure. Whoever killed her needed to be put away wherever they were.

With a sigh, Fiona got out of her car and made her way toward her apartment building. She entered, then headed for the elevator. The warm, yellow light of the lobby illuminated the picturesque flowers and plants that lined the walls. Fiona got into the elevator and took it up to her floor. The elevator doors opened up to a plush beige carpet that covered the hallway. On either side, doors of different colors marked each private apartment. The building was small but cozy, and Fiona had a good relationship with her neighbors.

As she turned the hallway toward her apartment, the sight of a figure up ahead stopped her in her tracks. Standing outside of her door, pacing around anxiously, was Mark.

Fiona swallowed hard. Mark was the guy she'd been dating, but truthfully, it wasn't working out. She had never truly dated anyone before him, even though she was twenty-six, but it just wasn't working out. For one, Fiona had kissed her coworker, Agent Jake Tucker, only days ago.

Two, Mark had been getting a bit overbearing and possessive, and they'd only been seeing each other for a couple of weeks. It was a lot, and Fiona wanted to break it off, but every time she'd tried, she'd ended up backing out, terrified of hurting him once he put on those sad eyes. But she had been ignoring his texts for the past day because she knew she had to break it off. And yet here he was, standing there outside of her apartment, uninvited.

Fiona took a deep breath and approached him cautiously. "Mark, what are you doing here?" she asked, trying to keep her voice calm.

Mark turned around, and his face lit up when he saw her. "Fiona, thank God," he said, relief evident in his voice. "I've been trying to reach you for days. I thought something had happened to you."

Fiona frowned, feeling a surge of annoyance. "I've been busy," she said shortly. "And I don't appreciate you showing up unannounced like this."

Mark's face fell, and Fiona immediately felt guilty. She knew she was being harsh, but she couldn't help it. She didn't want to deal with this right now, not when she had so much else on her mind.

"I'm sorry," she sighed. "I just... I need some space right now."

Mark nodded, his expression resigned. "I understand," he said softly. "But please, just hear me out. I know things have been moving fast between us, and maybe that's my fault. But I really like you, Fiona. I want to make this work."

Fiona felt a pang of guilt. Mark seemed like a good guy, even if he was overbearing, and he didn't deserve to be treated like this. She couldn't put it off any longer.

"Mark, just... come in. We need to talk."

She unlocked her door and pushed it open. Mark followed her in. Once they were alone in her apartment, Mark turned to her. "I don't understand why you're ignoring me. What did I do?"

Fiona's heart sank. She didn't want to hurt him, but she knew she had to be honest. "Mark, I... I think we need to take a break," she said softly. "I don't think this is working out."

Mark's face fell, and he took a step back. "What? Why? Is it because of that guy at work? Jake? Is that it?"

Fiona's face flushed with guilt. Mark didn't know about the kiss with Jake, but he'd been showing jealousy about their close working relationship for the entire time they'd been seeing each other.

"Mark, it's not about Jake," she said firmly. "It's just... we're not right for each other. We want different things."

Mark's eyes hardened. "So that's it? You're just going to throw away what we have because of some vague idea that we want different things? I thought we had something special, Fiona."

Fiona shook her head, and in a firm voice, said, "I'm sorry, Mark. I just don't think we're a good match. And I don't want to lead you on or hurt you more by pretending otherwise."

Mark shook his head. "No, Fiona. You're not being fair to me. You can't just string me along for weeks and then break it off like this. I deserve an explanation."

Fiona took a deep breath, feeling a wave of frustration. "I'm not stringing you along, Mark. And I've explained it as best I can. I'm sorry if it's not what you want to hear, but it's the truth."

Mark didn't look satisfied. "I don't believe you," he said, his voice low. "There's something else going on here, something you're not telling me."

Fiona felt a flicker of irritation.They barely even knew each other, and yet he acted like he owned her, like he was entitled to her.

Fiona hadn't dated anyone before, but she knew this wasn't right.

"That's enough, Mark," she said. "I want you to leave, now."

All at once, Mark's hostile demeanor changed and sadness took over his face. His eyes filled with tears, and he looked at her, pleading.

"Fiona, hold on," he said. "Hold on, don't do this. Come on, we can talk about it."

And there was the guilt again. It seemed easy when he was getting on her nerves, but to watch him hurting—it hurt her too.

She wasn't a monster. But she had to stick to her guns.

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