Bones Learn To Listen When Silence Speaks by Ryn Miles 142

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Aurelia had been on the phone for over half an hour. When she finally came back to the private room, Jessica was still making out with her boy toy like they couldn’t get enough of each other. 

Their clothes were all rumpled and disheveled. 

But Jessica was obviously the more level–headed one. She pushed him away at just the right moment, straightened her clothes, and said, “Aurelia and I have business to discuss. Go have some fun outside. Order whatever you want to drink, it’s on me.” 

“No, put it on my tab,” Aurelia quickly cut in. It was her treat, after all, and she wanted to be a good host. 

“Go on,” Jessica said with a grin, waving her man away. Then she casually grabbed her drink and turned to Aurelia. “Ah, to be young. They never seem to run out of energy.” 

Aurelia was already used to Jessica always going full throttle with her wild, unfiltered style. Most of the time, she just smiled and let it slide. 

But sometimes, like now, she would toss back a reply. 

“Looks like this one’s even younger than the last,” Aurelia teased. 

“Yeah, he just turned twenty,” Jessica said, lighting up a slim cigarette and taking her time with it. 

Aurelia mentally crunched the numbers. 

This one was twenty–two years younger. 

Jessica caught her train of thought and chuckled. “We met when we were both at our wildest ages. Don’t you think we’re a perfect fit?” 

Aurelia was stumped for a comeback. 

Luckily, a waiter arrived with more drinks, and Aurelia quickly changed the subject with a toast. 

Jessica never doubted Aurelia’s abilities. Jessica trusted her to handle things, so she never bothered to ask about the project. 

After finishing her last drag, Jessica stubbed out her cigarette and looked over at Aurelia. “I heard Mr. Locke’s getting engaged?” 

Aurelia thought for a second, then said, “If it’s reached you, then the rumor is probably true.” 

Jessica stared at her, as if she was trying to read her mind. “What’s your take on it?” 

“Doesn’t matter to me,” Aurelia replied with a shrug. 

Jessica laughed. “Glad to see you’re not letting it get to you. There’s no shortage of men out there. There’s no point getting hung up on the past. Even if he begs for a second chance, don’t even think about taking him 

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back.” 

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“You’re reading too much into it, Jessica. He’s not coming back, and I’m not going back either,” Aurelia said. 

She meant every word of it. 

“Exactly! Why waste twenty chances on one guy when you could give twenty guys a shot each? If you can’t find Mr. Right, just collect a whole bunch of Mr. Wrongs!” Jessica quipped. 

She continued, “It’s like keeping a single fish. You’d be devastated if it died. But if you’ve got a whole pond, you won’t even notice when one goes missing. Give yourself some options and forget about quality. If you’re going to have men in your life, make sure you have plenty to choose from!” 

Aurelia honestly had no clue where Jessica picked up all this savage wisdom. 

Thinking about it, Jessica must’ve gone through some seriously rough patches herself, and these savage mantras were how she saved herself from her lowest points. 

Aurelia didn’t have any of that. She relied on nothing but her own courage. 

Just like when she loved Cassian, she had dived headfirst into it with no second thoughts. If she had the guts to fall for Cassian, she damn well had the strength to shove those feelings down and keep moving. 

The waiter came in with drinks, saying Jessica’s man had sent them over for the two of them. 

Jessica laughed, “Look at that. He still remembers his old lady even when he’s out playing. I’ve gotta admit, the kid’s got some heart.” 

They kept drinking for a while, and soon enough, the alcohol was starting to hit Aurelia. 

With Aurelia’s usual tolerance, this amount shouldn’t have fazed her at all. But tonight, her mind felt foggy, and her whole body was burning up, almost feverish. 

Jessica was feeling it too. She fidgeted with her collar, clearly uncomfortable, then grabbed her phone and called her man, telling him to hurry back. 

He didn’t waste any time and showed up almost instantly. 

As soon as he stepped inside, Jessica immediately wrapped herself around him. 

He grinned, “Missed me?” 

Aurelia didn’t feel like sticking around, so she excused herself to get some air and give them some space. planned to head to the bathroom to freshen up, then call Miranda for a ride. 

But the moment Aurelia walked into the bathroom, someone covered her mouth and nose, and a harsh chemical smell filled her nostrils. 

Aurelia didn’t even have time to fight back before everything went black. 

She 

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Meanwhile, Tessa was hurrying over. 

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She’d already called Liam and Jasper, and both promised they’d be there in no time. And of course, Cassian was coming too. 

Cassian was having dinner with Benjamin at the Locke family home tonight, so he wasn’t with the group. 

When Tessa called, Cassian said he’d swing by once he finished eating and told her to go ahead and have a drink with Jasper and Liam first. 

Just as Tessa was about to arrive at the club, Karlie texted her. 

It read, [Can’t wait for the drama to start!] 

Just those few words were enough to get Tessa all fired up. 

After texting Tessa, Karlie turned to her friend and asked again, “Are you sure this stuff is foolproof?” 

“Totally! The pills were legit. Even the most virtuous woman would turn into a total party girl after taking them,” her friend assured her. 

Karlie trusted her friends. After all, they were the ones who were always tinkering with sketchy pills and weird chemicals. 

They have also used this kind of stuff to get with plenty of women before, and have yet to fail. 

Furthermore, they’d spiked Aurelia’s drink with twice the usual dose. Unless she dropped dead on the spot, there’s no way she’d survive what’s coming. 

“Don’t forget. Make sure to get it all on video!” Karlie reminded, extra sharp. 

Aurelia loved holding that apology video over Karlie’s head. This was merely payback. Karlie would get her own dirt on Aurelia and keep it as blackmail. 

If Karlie ever got annoyed with Aurelia or was just in a bad mood, she’d just upload that video and let the whole internet see it. 

It would ruin Aurelia’s reputation for good and make sure Aurelia would never be able to show her face again. 

Just imagining Aurelia on her knees, sobbing and begging for mercy, was sweet revenge for Karlie. It was finally time for Karlie to get Aurelia back for all the humiliation she had put Karlie through. 

“Don’t worry, I’ve got everything covered. It’s foolproof,” her friend replied. 

But truth be told, he had his own fantasies about Aurelia. She was insanely beautiful, and he’d never had a shot with anyone like her before. He could barely contain himself just thinking about it. 

Still, he knew Karlie absolutely hated Aurelia, and if he ever let that slip, no doubt Karlie would flip out. 

So if he wanted to keep sticking with Karlie, he just had to suck it up and keep his mouth shut. If nothing else, he could always save a copy of the video for his own private viewing later. 

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In the dim room, Aurelia felt like she was burning up from the inside out. Her whole body was on fire, and it was driving her crazy. 

All logic and self–control had gone out the window, wiped clean by the drugs. All that was left was the raw, uncontrollable desire pulsing through her. 

She tugged desperately at her clothes, her throat felt like sandpaper, and every sound that came out was harsh and broken. 

Her harsh breathing drowned out any words she tried to say. She was panting hard, chest rising and falling like she’d just run a marathon. 

Her limbs were useless. No matter how much she tried, she just couldn’t get herself up. All that struggling, and she was still stuck there, helpless. 

The door opened, then shut again. 

Light flooded in for a moment, then darkness swallowed the room once more. 

Her fading consciousness registered. Someone had come in. 

“Is that you, Jessica?” Aurelia rasped, her voice so hoarse it barely sounded like her own. 

With the drugs messing with her system, Aurelia’s thoughts were all over the place. 

She had no clue how she’d gotten here, or what had gone down before this. All she knew was that she felt unbearably awful. 

It felt like thousands of ants were crawling under her skin, driving her insane. 

Someone drew near and felt her forehead, checking how hot she was. 

The chill of that hand was like a piece of ice tossed into a blazing fire. 

Without thinking, Aurelia clung to that hand. “That feels so good…” she murmured. 

But that little bit of comfort didn’t last long before another, even hotter wave crashed over her. 

She squirmed and struggled, her hands clawing at her clothes on their own, tearing at the fabric. It felt like her clothes were trapping all that fire, ready to scorch her from the inside out. 

Thankfully, someone was here to help her now. 

The stifling cocoon around her was stripped away, letting the heat spill out. 

Her mind grew a little clearer. 

“Are you the guy Ms. Lane sent for me?” Aurelia mumbled, her voice still thick and dazed. 

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