Page 285 of Taken Away

Bennett looked down at his hand.

The wedding band caught the last of the light.

For years, he had worn it like a promise.

Then like a wound.

His thumb found the ring.

He twisted it once.

For a moment, it would not move.

Then it slid free. The weight of it surprised him.

Bennett held the ring in his palm.

A small circle of gold.

A lifetime.

He closed his fingers around it and pressed it once to his lips.

Then he slipped it into his pocket.

FIFTY-FIVE

Blackwood Ridge

Bennett

When Bennett returned to the bedroom, Aubrey was awake.

She was lying still, her eyes open, staring toward the window as if she had woken in a world she did not recognize.

Bennett stopped in the doorway.

“Hey.”

She turned her head.

Her gaze moved over him slowly, as though coming back from somewhere very far away.

“Hey.”

He crossed to the bed and sat beside her.

“How long was I asleep?”

“A while.”

She wiped at her face with the heel of her hand.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t.”

Her mouth trembled.