Chapter 18

The moment Samuel flicked on the lights, the entire room was laid bare before his eyes. All the wedding photos that used to crowd the walls were gone, leaving behind the tattered plaster. The little trinkets Catherine once adored, the furniture she used every day—none of it was there anymore. Heavy silence hung in the air, as if screaming at him that the villa had been unoccupied for quite some time. "Cathy?" Samuel's voice echoed off the barren walls of the living room. He made his way upstairs, realizing the bedroom was just as empty. Inside the wardrobe, the clothes he had once bought her were still hanging there, untouched. The sleeve of the one on the far right still bore the faint smudge of the lipstick he'd given her during the New Year. It had faded into a soft brownish stain—like a dried-up tear. … Dawn broke, but Samuel was still slouched on the dusty couch. The phone in his hand kept flashing nonstop with messages from his assistant. Every message said the sam