Later that night, I wake up to the feeling of something wet and soft on my forehead. I don't open my eyes because I know who it is. Beau is here for his nightly visit. I don't know how he gets in this late, but he's come to see me every single night even though I asked him to stay away. I won't lie; a part of me is happy he didn't listen, because I look forward to this nighttime ritual. I lay as still as possible, pretending to be asleep.

"How are you doing today, my love?" Beau whispers. "I'm here to visit like I promised I would. I hope you're doing better."

I want to answer, and say yes, I am doing better and tell him there's nothing to worry about, but I don't. His voice tells me how concerned he is, and I wish I could ease his worries, but I can't. He'll stop coming once I acknowledge his visits, and I don't want that. I need this time with him.

Tears sting the back of my eyes. Knowing these are the only moments I'll ever have with him makes my heart ache. I truly wish things could be different. I wish Beau and I could have a future together. I really do.

He stops speaking, and then I don't hear anything. I open my eyes once I believe the coast is clear. But Beau is still here, sleeping. I take a good look at him, and my heart breaks once I see what the stress of all of this has done to him. The loss of our baby, and myself, must be taking a toll on him. I wish I could do something to help. I know I could ease his pain by agreeing to be with him but being with him now would only cause us more pain later. His family will never accept me, and I don't want to hurt either of us more by deceiving him into believing we can overcome that.

I lift my hand to stroke his hair but pull it back at the last second. If I touch him, he'll wake up, and I don't want that, because then he'll leave. I want to spend some time with him before he does. I settle back into the pillows and stare at him, thinking about everything that could have been.

***

I bite my lip as I contemplate my situation. I'm getting discharged today, which is a good thing because being in the hospital the past month has driven me crazy, but unfortunately, I am far from happy. My mind hasn't been able to calm down since I woke up this morning. I pace the room as Tamara helps me arrange my things.

"What's wrong?" Tamara asks, noticing my tense behavior.

"Beau," I blurt out.

"Beau?" Tamara arches a brow.

"Yes, Beau. He didn't show up last night."

"I thought you asked him to stay away from you." She looks at me, confused.

"Yes, I did, but he didn't. He's come to see me every single night I've been here, except for last night, and I can't figure out why."

Tamara stops what she's doing and crosses her arms. "Let me get this straight. You asked Beau to stay away from you, and he didn't listen at first, but then last night he respected your wishes. And you're worried about why?"

"Yes, I'm worried something might have happened to him."

"Delilah, are you listening to yourself?"

"What do you mean?"

"The one time Beau heeds your request, you're worried something might have happened to him? You sound like a woman who doesn't want her lover to stop being in love with her even though she won't be with him."

"No, this has nothing to do with that. Beau promised he would come every night, and then he doesn't show up on my last one here? Something must be wrong, Tamara."

"I don't think so. It's normal for people to not say goodbye, because they feel it's too hard. Maybe that's why Beau didn't come."

"I considered that, but it doesn't sound like Beau. He wouldn't pass up the chance to say goodbye to me. I just have a feeling that something is wrong."

"Hmmm." Tamara tilts her head as she considers what I'm saying.

"Can you call Harvey and see if he's heard from Beau?" I ask. "I haven't gotten a new phone yet, and I don't have Beau's number."

"Harvey and I aren't really on speaking terms at the moment," Tamara answers.

I guess they must be fighting, but I don't particularly care at the moment. "Please call him; I have this horrible feeling something might have happened to Beau. I need to know if I'm right."

Tamara must sense my desperation, because she relents. "Alright, I'll call him," she says, pulling out her phone and dialing Harvey's number.

"Thank you." I continue to pace the room as I wait for Harvey to answer. I'm praying that this feeling is wrong, and that Beau is perfectly fine.

***

Harvey doesn't answer Tamara's calls, so now we are on our way to the Williams' estate. As we get closer, my worries escalate. Someone's hand touches mine, and I turn. Tamara gives me an encouraging smile and squeezes my hand. I pat hers and smile back. I continue praying that I'm wrong about the horrible feeling in my heart as we turn down the driveway of the estate.

Once we arrive, I rush out of the car and run over to the front door. I knock and impatiently wait for someone to answer. I know I'm walking into the lion's den, but I don't care right now. All I care about is satisfying this anxious feeling deep within me. I need to know Beau is okay.

The second the maid opens the door, I push her out of the way and walk inside. Tamara calls for me to wait for her, but I don't bother to slow my pace. I head for the stairs, but something catches my attention before I get there. Someone's crying. I walk toward the sound, and my brows pull together as I find Jenny and Nana in the living room.

"What is going on?" I ask no one in particular. Despite the loud wails coming from her, Jenny hears me. It was her that I heard crying.

"You devil! How dare you show your face here?" Jenny screams as she rushes toward me. Before I know what's happening, my left cheek begins to burn. Jenny smacked me. I stare at her wide-eyed, shocked by what she just did.

"This is all your fault. You killed my son. You devil, you have finally killed him!" Jenny tries to punch me, and I attempt to block her hands as I digest her words.

"Stop hitting the poor girl, Jennifer. She is not the reason why Beau is in this situation," Nana says from her wheelchair.

"No, Mama, it's her fault," Jenny snarls, pulling my hair. I quickly untangle her hands and push her away, but Jenny decides to find another place on my body to attack. What the hell is wrong with her? "She killed my son, so now I'm going to kill her!" Jenny wraps her hands around my throat, choking me. I struggle to breathe as I try to get away. This woman is going to kill me. My eyes roll to the back of my head, and it gets harder to breathe.

"Take your hands off her, Jennifer. You are hurting her!" Nana screams, but Jenny only ignores her and continues her assault.

I claw at Jenny's hands, but she doesn't stop even as I break the skin and blood starts to slip from the wounds. It's getting difficult to keep my eyes open. Throat burning from the pressure, I can feel my soul about to slip from my body. My lungs aren't able to take in any air, and my eyelids drop of their own accord, darkness surrounding me. I can't believe this is how I'm going to die. Just as I'm giving up hope, the pressure on my neck is suddenly removed. My eyes shoot open, and I cough heavily. I massage my throat and look for the person who saved me. Harvey's standing a few feet away from me with Jenny on the floor beside him. He must have pulled her off me.

"Thank you so much," I rasp. "I really thought I was going to die."

"I am so sorry she did that to you," Harvey says. "I can't believe she tried to kill you."

"I can't either."

"Oh my God! She has bewitched you, too!" Jenny shouts at Harvey from the ground.

"Shut up, Jennifer; you should be begging her not to press charges after what you just did," Nana snaps.

"Press charges?" Jenny laughs dryly as she stands. "I should be the one pressing charges. She is the reason my son is going to die."

"For the last time," Nana says. "Delilah is not at fault for what's happened. You and your father are."

"What happened to Beau?" I walk closer to Nana. That's all I care about. Jenny can blame whoever she wants.

"You want to know what happened to Beau? You want to know?" Jenny screams, getting in my face again.

"Yes, I want to know. I want to know what's happened to the love of my life!" I scream back at her.

"He's dead."

The words echo in my head. "No, you're lying; Beau is not dead." I grab Jenny by her collar and shake my head, not wanting to believe her words.

"I'm not lying, Delilah. Beau is dead."

My grip on Jenny's shirt goes limp as my legs give out on me. My ass roughly hits the ground, but I feel no pain.

"NO!" I scream, shaking my head and trying to comprehend Jenny's words.

"I don't believe this. Beau is not dead. He can't die. I can't live without him. He knows that." My heart rate increases as my gaze shifts from one person to the other. No one speaks. No one says that what Jenny just told me is a lie. The room begins to spin, and I start hyperventilating. "Beau is not dead," I repeat.

"Lilah," Tamara tries to put her arms around me, but I shake her off. When did she get here? I don't even remember her coming into the room.

"No!He is not dead," I scream, making Tamara take a step back from me."He is not dead!" My heart is beating hard against my ribcage. Andthe room hasn't stopped spinning. Then, my eyelids drop, and everything fades.The light of my world is gone, so it's easy to surrender to the darkness.