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Chapters (73)
  1. Goodbye to the Dead
  2. Also By Brian Freeman
  3. Title
  4. Copyright
  5. Dedication
  6. Epigraph
  7. CONTENTS
  8. PROLOGUE
  9. THEN
  10. 1
  11. 2
  12. 3
  13. 4
  14. 5
  15. 6
  16. 7
  17. 8
  18. 9
  19. 10
  20. 11
  21. 12
  22. 13
  23. 14
  24. 15
  25. 16
  26. 17
  27. 18
  28. 19
  29. 20
  30. 21
  31. 22
  32. 23
  33. 24
  34. 25
  35. 26
  36. 27
  37. 28
  38. 29
  39. 30
  40. 31
  41. 32
  42. 33
  43. 34
  44. 35
  45. NOW
  46. 36
  47. 37
  48. 38
  49. 39
  50. 40
  51. 41
  52. 42
  53. 43
  54. 44
  55. 45
  56. 46
  57. 47
  58. 48
  59. 49
  60. 50
  61. 51
  62. 52
  63. 53
  64. 54
  65. 55
  66. 56
  67. 57
  68. 58
  69. 59
  70. 60
  71. 61
  72. FROM THE AUTHOR
  73. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Janine smiled at him. She held out no hope that Howard would ever finish his book, or if he did, that he would ever publish it.

‘I wanted to tell you,’ Howard said. ‘Carol knows about us.’

‘What?’

‘She knows I come down here to visit you.’

‘Oh.’

‘I don’t know how she found out.’

‘Oh,’ Janine said again. She didn’t know what else to say.

‘She wants me to stop, but I’ll keep coming, I promise. Don’t worry about that.’

Janine found herself indescribably sad. Sad about everything. Sad that she was ruining this man’s life and marriage. Sad at even the possibility that he might stop visiting and leave her completely alone. Sad that she was here.

‘Look, Howard,’ she said, watching him hang on her words. ‘I want you to think about this. Maybe you shouldn’t come here anymore.’

‘What? No. No way.’

‘You’re hurting your wife.’

‘I don’t . . .’ he began, and she realized that he was about to say: I don’t care. He stopped without going on, but she knew it was true. She’d become his Mona Lisa. She was everything to him, beginning and end.

This was wrong. She had to put a stop to it.

‘Really, Howard,’ she said in a sterner voice. ‘Go home to Carol. Forget about me.’

He shook his head fiercely. ‘I won’t do that.’

‘This isn’t fair to you or to your wife. It means a lot to me that you visit, but I’ve let this go on way too long.’

‘Janine—’

‘No, I mean it. You have to stop.’

‘I can’t,’ he insisted. ‘I’m not going to give up. I won’t quit until I find something. I won’t stop until you’re free.’ He paused and added breathlessly: ‘Until we’re together.’

Janine tried to keep the horror from her face. That was the fantasy behind all of this. He would get her out of prison. He would rescue her. And they would live happily ever after, just the two of them. She had to kill that dream right now.

‘I’m never getting out of here,’ she said finally.

‘Don’t talk like that! Don’t give up. I promise I’ll find proof that you’re innocent.’

‘Howard,’ she told him sharply, in a voice that was barely a breath. ‘Don’t you understand? I’m not innocent. I’m guilty.’

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