Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 94457 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 472(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94457 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 472(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
“Quinton, I don’t think it’s what you think. The bracelet wasn’t stolen. That was just a story Adela came up with.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Adela told me that someone attacked her that night at the fundraiser. Some guy cornered her when she went to the bathroom. She said there was a girl her age who came to her rescue. Adela gave her the bracelet as a thank you, begging her not to say anything. I had no idea that it was Aspen.”
“What? No, no, that can’t be right. You are making this up. We would’ve known about that. Adela would have told me.” I keep shaking my head, trying to pull the memories from that night from my brain.
“Adela didn’t want to tell anyone. It was the first time she was allowed to go out with you guys. Dad was already so worried about her all the time, hovering over her. She thought if she told you or Dad, it would only get worse. That’s why she kept it from you.”
“Fuck!” I’m so stupid. Why didn’t I give her a chance to explain? “I gotta go, okay? I’ll call you back tomorrow.” I hang up the phone before Scarlet gets the chance to say goodbye. Shit, I feel like a fucking douchebag.
I made a mistake, and I’m man enough to admit that, but am I ready to tell Aspen? I can still see her eyes brimming with fear, my warning lingering in the air between us. I just saw red that day.
Between the bracelet and the memory of Adela, coupled with what Brittney told me, it was too much to handle.
Now I’m agonizing over doing the right thing and apologizing, something I never do, not for anyone. Apologizing means admitting you were wrong, which is something I normally avoid at all costs.
Fuck it. I don’t give myself time to think it through. All I know is I need to be near her. Getting out of bed, I get dressed quickly and head out.
On my walk to her room, I think about what I said again. I wouldn’t be surprised if she hadn’t left her room. I’m sure she’s been too afraid to even risk being seen.
As I get closer to her room, I reach into my pocket to grab her key, just to find it empty. What the hell? I must have dropped it in my hurry to get dressed. At least that’s what I keep telling myself, but with each step, there’s this strange awareness that pricks my senses.
I look up and find Ren standing at the end of the corridor. That’s when I know something is really wrong.
“She’s gone,” he says. I’m not sure I’m hearing him, so I rush toward him.
“What?” I ask, my tongue feeling heavy.
“She left. Got on the helicopter and left.”
Nothing that he’s saying makes sense. Why would she leave? She wouldn’t, would she? There is no place safer than Corium for her. The second she leaves, she becomes fair game to every single one of her father’s enemies.
“Why? What do you mean? When?” The questions come out in a haze. Ren just stares at me blankly, like he’s shut down his emotions.
When he doesn’t answer me, I start toward the elevator, pressing the button, willing it to move faster. I can feel Ren behind me, his movements mirror my own, but he doesn’t seem to care. It’s almost like…
“What’s going on, Ren? Why did she leave? What did she say to you?” The questions come out in a roar this time, the elevator dings, and the doors open.
I rush out into the cold, the wind whipping past me. The organ in my chest skips a beat, and something I haven’t ever felt before cuts through me. It’s an emotion I can’t quite pinpoint, and I imagine it’s what they call heartache. I look up into the sky and see the helicopter heading away from us. Fuck. I have to figure out how to get it to circle around and come back.
“Make them turn around! She can’t leave here, or she’ll fucking die,” I yell. Ren still appears to be in a trance.
“She got on the helicopter by herself. Obviously, she’d rather die than be here.”
I don’t believe that for a second. The reason she got on that helicopter at all has everything to do with me.
I did this to her. I pushed her to leave.
Heartache becomes horror when the helicopter starts to descend toward the forest. What is the pilot doing? Why is he… the question doesn’t even finish forming in my mind. Not when the helicopter disappears into the forest, and a plume of fire and smoke appears a moment later.
My hands start to tremble, and I take a step forward like I might be able to help in some way.