Chapter 86
“I have to ask,” I began, raising my voice slightly to be heard over the family chatter. “If Aaron doesn’t want to see anyone, why are you all here?”
Cathe looked down at the baby in her arms, her expression suddenly turning sad. “That’s… that’s actually a really hard question to answer.”
“We’re not here for Aaron,” Bonnie jumped in. “I mean, we are, but not the way you’d think. We’re here as… guardians, I guess.”
I didn’t understand. “Why?”
“Because last year on this day, Aaron just… left. Nobody knew where he went until we got a call from the cemetery security guard at like three in the morning.”
My stomach dropped. “The cemetery?”
“He slept at his son’s grave.”
*Jane*
Lucky whined deep in my chest. It was a sound of pure pain that I had to swallow before it escaped my throat even as I struggled to breathe. The image of Aaron all alone, spending the night at his son’s grave was so heartbreaking. All I felt was this intense amount of grief.
I needed to see him.
I could feel everyone’s eyes on me, waiting for some kind of reaction.
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But I was completely frozen. Lucky was howling, pushing me to go see him. I couldn’t move.
Cathe must have sensed my temporary paralysis because she placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. “Usually we handle the anniversary together. November 12th. We all go to the cemetery, lay flowers, say a few words. But last year, Aaron went back after we’d all left. We didn’t know until…” she trailed off, shaking her head. “At least the press wasn‘ t there for that part.”
“People should have the right to grieve,” I whispered more to myself than anybody else. Then I found the strength to get up. “I’m going upstairs to see him.”
No one argued. They just watched me go without a word.
Lucky could feel their eyes burning into my back as I ascended the stairs. Halfway up, the feeling became so intense that I turned around to look back at them.
Sure enough, every single person in that living room had been staring at me. The moment they realized I’d caught them, they all immediately snapped their attention back to the television.
I continued up the stairs, blocking out the sounds from the living room every time my enhanced hearing picked them up.
Aaron’s room was at the end of the hall. I raised my hand to knock, then thought better of it and simply turned the door handle.
He was lying on his bed, still fully dressed, staring at the TV mounted on the opposite wall. His eyes were blank, meaning he wasn’t really paying attention. It didn’t even seem like he was here at all.
At the sound of the door opening, he turned his head toward me, and I
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saw the moment his eyes focused in surprise.
“I thought you were Cathe.” His voice was rough like he hadn’t uttered a single word in hours. There were dark circles under his eyes that made him look older and more fragile.
It broke my heart to see him this way. Without saying a word, I closed the door behind me and turned the lock. Then I crossed the room, joined him on the bed and wrapped my arms around him.
He let out a shaky breath against my shoulder. Then he laughed quietly. “Probably not a good idea to lock the door,” he murmured into my hair. “One of my nasty sisters will definitely try to barge in here to check on me.”
“There are rules between girls. Trust me, they won’t disturb us. Cathe will make sure of it.”
He pulled back slightly to look at me. “Rules?”
“Girl code,” I said with a small smile.
“Really now? How long did you survive down there before escaping?”
I laughed. He sounded more upbeat than I expected. Thank God.
“Long enough to learn that your sisters are completely weird. But they‘ re also pretty cool. They love you like crazy.”
“What did they tell you? I hope they didn’t share any morbid stories.”
“Well, Diana informed me that I’m too stable to be your usual type. Apparently I’m the exception to your typically exceptional taste in women.”
Chapter 86
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“She said what?”
“Oh, that’s not even the best part. According to your loving sisters, you usually date complete psychopaths. One of them threw a bottle at your head, apparently?”
