He had never liked having his picture taken, and after everything that had happened, he had grown to detest it. He had never even bothered to look at the photos after they were framed, but he remembered exactly which ones Hannah had chosen for each spot. And now, they were all gone.


    "Why... why am I only noticing this now?" he murmured, a hollow ache spreading through his chest.


    His phone buzzed. He took a deep breath and answered.


    "How is Sandra..."


    "It''s terrible, Mr. Rosenberg! Miss Sandra... she... she jumped!" The phone was filled with her hysterical sobs.


    Lionel''s blood ran cold. His mind went nk.


    "This afternoon, Mr. Woods brought her the wedding dress. She refused to try it on, so he went in and pped her, told her if she didn''t wear it, she could get married naked. Then he sent the dressmakers away."


    "After that, she started screaming and smashing everything in her room. Then it went quiet. I kept calling her name, but she wouldn''t answer. I went to get Mr. Woods, but he told me to leave her alone."


    "I was so scared when she wouldn''t answer, so I broke the door down. I saw her standing by the window, covered in blood. I ran toward her, but she... she jumped. Mr. Rosenberg, what do we do? Please, you have to save her! She''s so young!"


    Her cries assaulted his ears. Lionel shot to his feet, the room spinning around him. He pressed a hand to his forehead. "Which hospital? I''m on my way."


    After she gave him the name, he hung up and rushed out.


    Cora watched him go, yelling after him not to go out in the storm, that it was about to pour.


    "Why? Why!" she screamed into the empty doorway. "What is so special about those two? Why does he have to torture himself for them?"


    One Hannah, one Sandra. Those two cursed women. She swore she would make them both pay.


    Lionel floored it, running red light after red light. Fat raindrops began to stter against the windshield, quickly turning into a torrential downpour. The road ahead beca a blurry waterfall, impossible to see through.


    Meanwhile, after dinner, Hannah and Quennel took a walk by the river before heading back.


    as


    "We''re lucky. The rain started just we got home" Quennel said as they walked inside. "I didn''t have anything moved. The apartment is just as you left it."


    Hannah looked around. Sheet


    been gone long, but it felt like a


    Though it wasn''t her home,


    a sense of peace settled ovepher as she stepped inside.


    "If you need anything, just call me. Don''t hesitate to ask, okay?"


    Hannah nodded.


    Just as Quennel was about to leave, his phone rang. He stepped aside to answer


    it.


    "Hannah,” he said after hanging up, his expression grim. "Something''s happened. Come with me to the hospital."