Chapter 18 Eighteen

• My palms were clammy, clutching my phone tightly as I waited in the dimly lit café of the address given by the nurse. The nurse who had called me earlier was late, and my nerves were fraying by the second. I kept glancing at the entrance, half expecting to see my mother or Denise storming in, ready to drag me away from this meeting. The thought sent a shiver down my spine.
• The nurse finally walked in, her eyes darting around nervously. She was a petite woman, with graying hair pulled back into a tight bun and lines on her face that told me she had seen too much. She spotted me and approached quickly.
• “Tessa,” she said. I nodded, gesturing for her to sit.