Chapter 120: The Virgin And The Masters, Part 31, Aftermath

MICHAEL

In the apartment, Charlotte charges straight into the bathroom, strips off, dropping her clothes to the floor as she vanishes into the shower. The clothes are disgusting. I scoop them into a plastic waste bag and dump the lot, hovering over the laundry chute, before settling for the garbage. She herself, even under the clothes, is filthy.

In the lounge, James and I wait together. “What´s our line?” he says quietly. “How mad at her are we?”

How do I answer that?

The woman I love abandoned me and left me numb with fear for her...

“Hugs first,” I say. “Mad later... Mmmm... I´m just going to take a look at her, now the worst of the dirt should be off. See what state she´s in.”