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“Welcome to the tribe,” he told me.
I broke out into a laugh as he wiped more tears, and I didn’t know what the hell was wrong with me, but it was nice to have someone to talk to.
“Stop crying,” he said again. “Shit happens, and you did your best.”
I stared at him, those words like a glass of cool water on the fire in my head. I wanted to believe them.
And there was nothing I could do to change what I’d done.
But if I’d done to Aydin what I did to Will, Aydin might not sympathize with me so much.
I belonged here.
Emory
Nine Years Ago
I licked my lips but then bit my bottom one to keep from smiling.
It didn’t work. Heat rushed to my cheeks, and my mind kept pulling me back to last night at the Cove—the feel of him, his taste and smell, and his words.
God, he was incredible. So much so that I probably wouldn’t have cared if he’d knocked me up last night, after all. I just wanted to be his.
I shook my head, trying to clear it. We committed a crime at the cemetery. What was I thinking? We could’ve easily been seen. Jesus.
I woke at four a.m. to find him gone, but I was tucked in tightly, and the house was locked up. My brother still wasn’t home from the night shift, so I washed out the dress, hung it to dry, and took a shower before checking on my grandma and making him breakfast.
Minutes before he was due to be home, the nurse showed up, and I grabbed the dress and my school bag that Martin had left inside the front door, and then I left him a note before escaping the confrontation.
Walking into the cathedral, I dug my key out of my pocket and hurried past the aisle. Rounding one of the columns, I hit something and stumbled back, looking up to see a dark-eyed girl, her mouth hanging open in surprise.
She reached out and grabbed me before I could fall.
“Sorry,” she breathed out, looking in a hurry.
I laughed under my breath, tightening my arm around the dress. “That’s okay. Accident.”
I hesitated for a moment, taking in her worn jeans, black sweatshirt, and the tattered pair of black Vans on her otherwise bare feet. A black ski cap covered her head, but I caught sight of a low, black ponytail hanging over her shoulder and down her chest.
Pretty.
Beautiful, actually.
Definitely not Thunder Bay Prep, though. Too bad. Would’ve been nice to have another girl with my winning sense of style.
“’Scuse me,” I said and continued past her.
I headed toward the stairs, but threw a glance over my shoulder, watching as she opened the middle door of the confessional—the cubby for the priest where he sat to listen to sins.
She looked around and then locked eyes with me, seeing me watch her. She raised her finger to her lips, telling me to keep quiet before she slipped inside with a mischievous smile and closed the door.
I laughed to myself and turned back around, jogging up the stairs to the door in the gallery. Grabbing the handle, I glanced over my shoulder one more time and saw Kai Mori.
He headed to the back of the church, and my heart skipped a beat as I watched him enter the confessional, the door to the left of the priest’s chamber to make his confession.
Only it wasn’t a priest in there. I snorted. Oh, shit.
I shook my head and opened the door, taking the hidden steps up to The Carfax Room. Not sure what she was up to, but who was I to ruin her fun? I had my own problems.
