More Than A Favor

Chapter 26

“What’s the use of missing them? Focus on what you’re going to do next,” Nora said, noticing the pain in my eyes and deliberately changing the

subject.

“Since you broke up with Logan, are you still going to work for him?” Nora

asked.

The water boiled, so I made two cups of instant coffee. “I’ve already sent the handover materials to the respective people. I’ve written my resignation letter. Once the amusement park inspection is done, I’ll resign.”

“Good choice. The idea of staying friends after a breakup is nonsense. Only distance helps you move on.” Nora fully supported my decision.

I nodded.

Nora, worried I might feel sad, didn’t linger on the subject. She glanced around my house and said, “You should get some new appliances here- maybe a fully automatic washing machine, a coffee machine, and a robot.

vacuum.”

“I’ll do it once I get back,” I replied.

Nora, sipping her coffee, looked at me curiously. “Where are you going?”

It took me four hours to reach Amaty by high–speed rail. The city lights were just coming on. It wasn’t as bustling as Hilcord, but it was still brightly lit, with the charm of a small town. Nora’s call came right on time. “Are you there yet? Have you found a place to stay?” she asked.

She hadn’t expected me to leave so quickly. When she’d asked earlier where I was going, I gave her the address and the time of my train ticket.

Nora thought I was leaving in such a hurry to avoid Logan, assuming I was afraid he’d try to cling to me.

I told her she was wrong–Logan wouldn’t do that. He was probably still angry. After all, I’d stood him up.

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And now, it seemed I was right. Since the time he’d called to ask why I didn’t show up to register for our marriage, he hadn’t texted or called me

once.

didn’t want to be pestered–not by Logan, but by Tessa and Ethan. They’d definitely try to find me and convince me to

only waste their energy and exhaust me. So,

the chance.

on airplane mode. Nora was calling my secondary number now–a number Logan didn’t know. It was my dad’s old number, one I’d kept in the other slot of my phone for

a rush,” I said, glancing around the unfamiliar city. Everything seemed

safe area. Check the closet and under the bed before you sleep. Make

and door,” Nora

her concern.

relief. “Elaine, you must take

matter what.”

said. “My mom and dad went through so much here. Even though I didn’t grow up here, I feel an unbreakable bond with this place.”

dad’s handwriting–a note with an address from his

up at me. I couldn’t help but look at him too,

and somewhat intimidating. Over the years, the men,

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had interacted with were always meticulously groomed, usually dressed in suits and

man, however, gave the impression of someone who had just

grip on my backpack. Nora had slipped a pepper spray and a folding knife into it before I

man had already started the

that look he

felt calm after arriving in this city, started racing erratically. Distracted by my wariness, I

paid and got out. Watching the vehicle drive away, I felt my

to look for my parents‘ old home. But now that I was

of potholes, and puddles dotted the road. My suitcase couldn’t be pulled along this

along the street until I found it. There was even a “For Rent”

a fool would rent a

as I stepped inside. It was a small courtyard, surrounded by rooms on all sides, with a tree standing in the middle. It was too dark to tell what kind of tree it was.

was a honey locust. It had been there since my dad’s childhood.

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7. Chapter 25

or a place to

turned to see an old woman with gray hair, leaning on a