Chloe turned back to the laptop. The screen light blinked over her face, pale and tired.
Her fingers hovered. Then, with a gentleness that didn't match the decision, she brushed the last bolded words. Soft. Almost like saying goodbye.
_Delete._
The names vanished. One line. Gone.
She'd already copied them into a separate note. The people marked to leave. All that was left was the _how_. And the _when_.
Her throat felt dry. There was a metallic taste at the back of her tongue, like she'd been biting it without knowing.
She exhaled and the sound came out shaky.
She reached for her phone. Her hand hesitated for half a second before her fingers closed around it.
She dialed a number she'd put on blacklist long ago. Someone she didn't wish to meet. Not now. Not like this. But the situation was forcing her hand and she was tired of being forced.
It rang once.
Click.
Maybe he was waiting. Or maybe his phone was just near. Either way, it made her stomach twist.
