How a Dying Woman Rewrote Her Epilogue

Chapter 552

The cramped elevator made Jarrod's voice ring out with startling clarity.

Elodie lifted her lashes, catching his gaze in the mirrored panel. The question had come out of nowhere.

She hesitated for a moment before meeting his eyes. "That night on the cruise... did you know I'd been drinking?"

Jarrod glanced at the fading red rash on her wrist, his tone calm. "Do you want me to say I knew, or that I didn't?"

That answer.

Hearing it, Elodie felt an old suspicion flare up in her chest, one she'd tried hard to push down.

The air between them turned delicate again, even though neither of them said another word.

Ding-

The elevator reached the ground floor.

Jarrod finally moved, stepping forward to stand beside her. He lowered his eyes, giving her a brief look. "Your allergy still hasn't cleared up. Remember to keep using the ointment."

With that, the doors slid open. He left without another word.

Elodie watched his retreating figure for a moment before stepping out herself, her expression carefully blank, as if nothing at all had just happened.

Some things, she realized, suddenly made sense. Others, they both pretended had never occurred.

headed back to her apartment to keep coding. After running into Jarrod, she didn't allow herself to dwell on

go. The code as essential-if she

kind of focus you can only muster when you're running tests and troubleshooting data

The next morning,

to take Elodie to the

it was

at the ticket scan was packed-no surprise, given

contestants left, nobody knew who else had advanced

was genuinely surprised when she spotted Watts Aldridge

her a grin and

too?" Elodie

it a secret was worth it just to see your

in a little,

with you, there was another reason I joined. I'm curious if the developer of U.N2 might show up. This sort

Elodie's eyes flickered. "Maybe."

for a moment, then quietly asked, "Are you alright after that

looking

came in, you were already asleep, so I didn't want to disturb you. You didn't feel

down, he'd peeked in to find her sound asleep. He'd quietly closed the

wasn't convinced Elodie hadn't noticed there was something off with the drinks

softened.

came in, he