Chapter 2009

There was a brief silence on the other end of the line. All of a sudden, Zac's emotionless voice cut through the quiet. "I've never pressured you into anything. If you don't want to go through with this, you're free to leave. Don't come back. I don't need anyone's help." "I didn't mean it that way, Zac—" Before Julia could explain, Zac had already hung up. A heavy sigh escaped her lips as she felt a wave of helplessness wash over her. "Zac, after seven years, why do you still not trust me?" she wondered silently. Her hand instinctively rested on her stomach as she looked up at the bleak, gray sky. For now, keeping the pregnancy a secret was all she could do. … After Abigail left, Taylor stayed behind with Germaine. The two of them wandered around for a while, searching without any clear direction. But soon enough, they spotted a suspicious Cathayan man near the edge of a predominantly Morg-Apreekan neighborhood. The man was driving a pickup truck, and as their cars stopped sid