Chapter 200
“You had a one night stand?” asked.
Pat nodded. “Yes. I did not want to be the oldest virgin alive anymore.”
“My goodness, Pat! Look at you. All grown up,” I said. “I’m happy as long as you’re happy. And Pat, thank you for being there for me when I really needed it.”/
Pat waved a hand, her blush deepening. “Shut up.”
I laughed, feeling content. But just as I was about to head to my own office, my phone began to ring. I pulled it out of my purse and saw the name on the screen. Sierra. I frowned. Sierra never called me. She was shy, an introvert who kept to herself, the kind of woman who mostly communicated through text messages. For her to be calling me directly, something must be wrong.
I answered the call. “Hey, Sierra?”
But the only response I got was crying. Sobs. Heavy, broken sobs that crackled through the speaker and made my heart clench.
“What is going on?” I asked. “Why are you crying?”
“Please, Celeste,” Sierra said, her voice barely intelligible through the tears. “I need to see you. I need to talk to you.”
“Okay, okay, calm down,” I said. I thought about asking her to come to Helix, but I quickly decided it was not a good idea. Sierra was fragile, sensitive, the kind of person who needed a safe space to fall apart. And she was crying on the phone, which meant something was seriously wrong. “Tell me where you are and I will come to you right away.”
“I am home.”
“Okay. I will be right there.”
I hung up and looked at Pat, who was watching me with concern written all over her face.
“I will be back in no time,” I said, already moving toward the door.
“Everything okay?” Pat called after me.
“I do not know yet,” I said without turning back.
I drove straight to the address I had for Sierra, a small apartment complex on the quieter side of the city. I knocked on the door and found it unlocked, so I pushed it open and stepped inside.

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