Until We Met Again ( Rowan and Johnson )
Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Karawed away her tears and composed hersett, After taking a deep breath, she asked him. “And then? What happened after that?”

Tust remember, when Rowan was thirteen, Landon brought home a woman. And she had a kid with–her, Landon’s love child from his affairs, already six years old,”

Karla couldn’t believe her ears. “Damn! He had a fling while still hitched?”

The more Karla thought about it, the angrier she got. She simply couldn’t wrap her head around it. If Landon didn’t love Joana, why the hell was he keeping her captive? Was torturing her some kind of sick game to him? That guy was nuts.

According to Charles, Rowan had stayed in that house for a year before he left. At fourteen, he was off to college, and after that, he lived on campus and never went back to that so–called home.

Hearing this from Charles didn’t surprise Karla one bit. Rowan was bound to leave one of these days. She figured his foray into acting was probably just a means to make some dough.

Karla suddenly realized that her time–traveling escapade had yielded zilch in terms of clues.

Who was the body? No clue. Why did the photo trigger her time travel? Beats her. Who was out to get her? Karla was in the dark.

In short, she was clueless.

The only thing Karla did know was that her connection with Rowan seemed predestined. It seemed like Rowan knew her from when he was a kid, and they were bound to cross paths again.

Once she had that straightened out, Karla knew that to dig up more clues, she’d have to take another leap through time.

But it wasn’t all for nothing this trip. At the very least, she now knew about Rowan’s parents and a man named Nicholas, who might hold some clues.

Karla asked Charles if he knew someone named Nicholas. He shook his head, clueless, leaving Karla to her own devices to figure it out.

It’s getting dark, so Karla decided to drive back home.

It had been ages since she’d seen her folks. Bursting through the door, Karla wrapped them in a bear hug. “Three months without you guys. I’ve missed you like crazy.”

“What are you on about, kiddo? Didn’t you just see us this morning before you left?” Sophia was utterly confused. Karla chuckled sheepishly. “Just kidding around. Just one day without you feels like three months to me.”

(.

“Always with the wisecracks, you. Clingy as you are, what are you going to do when you get married?” Sophia playfully poked Karla’s forehead, feigning annoyance but secretly loving the affection. It was rare for Karla to be so cuddly. What was up with her today?

Catching the conversation veering off, Karla nipped it in the bud, excusing herself for a shower before hightailing it out of there.

Glenn watched Karla’s retreating back and suddenly voiced a thought that had been nagging at him, “Hey, hon, haven’t you noticed something different about her?”

“Well of course, take a look at those dark circles. Does she look like she’s rested? Who knows what’s been keeping her so busy these days? She looks run down, like she hasn’t had a good day in months.” Sophia was always very concerned about her daughter’s work and therefore paid close attention to her diet.

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Chapter 28

Thanks to Sophia’s care, Karla, despite her grueling job, always looked well–fed and rosy–cheeked, the very picture of pampering.

But what on earth had Karla been up to today to come back looking so haggard?

Glenn blinked, realizing they weren’t quite talking about the same thing. To him, it felt as if he hadn’t seen his daughter in ages, even though it had been just a day. She seemed more mature somehow. Was it just his imagination?

Karla really missed her own little room. It had been three months since she had slept in a bed, and those months, had been tough on her. She suddenly thought of Rowan, who had lived in that environment his whole life.

Poor kid, growing up like that must have been rough.

Karla had planned to sort through everything that happened over the past few months, but as soon as she hit the bed, she was out cold, sleeping like the dead. She was exhausted after three months of restless sleep, and she didn’t wake up until two in the afternoon, which startled herself. She had work to do!

Rushing through her morning routine in a frenzy, Karla was about to dash off to the police station when Glenn, casually watching TV in the living room, stopped her with a reminder, “Where are you off to in such a rush? Isn’t today your day off?”

“Right. It’s the weekend, my comp day. What am I thinking?” Karla smacked her forehead, shook her head at her own forgetfulness, and marched back to bed.

Glenn was left in the living room, puzzled. What was up with the kid? How could she forget her own day off?