The grip was so tight Cody cried out in pain.
Blake froze for a moment, about to say something, but his phone rang.
"Blake, where are you? Mason is looking for you, he won't stop crying..."
Tiffany Reed's voice filtered through the phone, faint over the sound of another child crying in the background.
Blake's tone immediately softened as he replied, "Tell Mason I'll be right there."
He hung up and impatiently let go of Cody.
"I have to go. You and Cody wait for me here. Don't go anywhere."
Behind us was a large theme park. Blake and his friends hurried into the park, clearly on their way to soothe Tiffany and her son.
After all, one call from Tiffany had been enough for him to abandon me while I was hemorrhaging, my life on the line.
The school event wasn't over, but Cody was clearly shaken. I quickly got the organizer's approval and took him home.
After we returned to the apartment we were temporarily staying in, I coaxed him to sleep and then received a call.
"Blake Sterling is investigating you. Do you need me to stop him?"
"No, it's okay."
We were only in Oakhaven for seven days. After seven days, Blake and I would return to our separate lives, never to cross paths again.
Not long after I hung up, the doorbell rang.
"Amelia, we need to talk."
Blake stood outside, holding a beautifully packaged limited-edition toy car. He scanned the tiny apartment, not bothering to hide the contempt in his eyes.
"This is where you live? This apartment isn't even the size of a walk-in closet at the Sterling estate. Is this the grand, independent life you wanted?"