Page 175 of Only Be Mine

“Yes.”

The word echoed.

“And Cate,” he added, quieter now, “when that happens, there are things you’ll realize. About timing. About access. About who may have benefited the most from your grief.”

My stomach turned.

“I’m not telling you this to scare you,” he said. “I’m telling you because once you know, pretending not to will be the most dangerous thing you can do.”

I stared out the window, watching people pass by with drinks in their hands, unaware of how close the world could tilt.

“Okay,” I said finally. “I’ll call you.”

“I’ll wait,” Marshal replied.

The line went dead.

I sat there for a long moment after, breathing through the noise, through the weight, through the understanding settling into my bones.

John hadn’t disappeared.

He’d been erased.

And someone had built a life for me on top of that erasure - carefully, deliberately - until I forgot how to ask questions.

My phone lit up again, this time with a text.

Trevor: Just checking in. Let me know when you’re ready to talk.

I didn’t answer.

Instead, I opened my notes app and typed a single line.

Questions I’ve never been allowed to ask.

Below it, I added the first one.

Who closed the case?

Then I sat back, coffee cooling in my hands, and understood something with quiet clarity.

I wasn’t running anymore.

I was preparing.

Chapter 64

Cate

Present

The coffee had gone cold before I realized I hadn’t taken a sip.

I sat by the window, hands wrapped around the mug more for the warmth than the caffeine, watching people pass by on the sidewalk like I wasn’t part of them anymore. Everyone moved with purpose - phones pressed to their ears, bags slung over their shoulders, conversations spilling out in pieces I couldn’t hear.

Life went on…

My phone lay face-down on the table between my elbows. Silent now. The call with Marshal still echoed in my head.