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I felt terrible. I knew Kane wasn’t that kind of person. But I had all this hurt built up inside of me, and it begged to be let loose, to lash out at the source of the pain. “I’m sorry.” I wiped a tear that had escaped off my cheek. I didn’t want to be that person. No matter what he had done, I still wanted to be me. Though, was I truly me without him? I couldn’t think like that. I was my own person. Why didn’t I feel whole then?
“Don’t apologize. I deserve that and more.” He sounded so defeated. “Regardless of what you may think of me, I will always feel honored you chose to share your dreams with me, but your dreams are for you to tell. And if you ever need help making them come true, I will do anything in my power to see that they do.”
I knew he spoke the truth, and I loved him and hated him for it. But I had to save the world and make my father proud. “So, you’ll drop out of the running?”
“That would defeat the purpose of making your dreams come true.” He wagged his brows before giving me a thoughtful smile. “But if I believed for one second that’s what you really wanted; I would step out of your way. Is it what you really want?”
I told myself to lie to him. But how do you lie to half of your heart? It was impossible. “Drive, Kane. Just drive.”
A Dream Come True
My stomach was flip-flopping as we walked toward the production studio warehouse. Landon Drummond was my first crush and one of my heroes. I was anxious to meet him, though cautious. I was wary of dreams now. What if Landon wasn’t all I had imagined him to be, like the man who walked too close to me? The man who’d breathed life into my soul, only to crush it.
It was a silent walk into the studio, though a million thoughts hung between us in the sticky air. I think I hated that more than anything. It used to be so easy to be around him. I missed that comfort.
Kane opened the door for me. “Megan will meet us and take us to the editing suite.”
I nodded. “Thank you for setting this up.” I should at least be grateful. And I was. It was just like him to be so thoughtful. Which only added to my conflicting feelings toward him.
“You’re welcome.”
As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by a frazzled redhead. She was around my age with curls tighter than mine and was wearing mismatched socks with her sandals. I already loved her. It wasn’t that long ago that I was wearing polyester pants with elastic waistbands. Sometimes I really missed that girl. I wished I was still as naive. Not because I didn’t want to know the truth but because I wanted hope for a future that I knew wasn’t possible now. I ached to feel that all-encompassing excitement of the unknown. Now that I knew the truth, there was no reason to hope.
“Hi, I’m Megan. You must be Kane and Scarlett. Landon is on an extremely tight schedule, so follow me.”
Kane placed his hand on the small of my back, nudging me forward. He had done it dozens of times in the past, and it felt so natural that for a moment I forgot we were at war and that he had ever let me go. However, reality was never far behind. I gave him a pointed look.
He dropped his hand with a heavy breath. “Sorry. Old habit.”
It was a lovely habit, one I used to adore. It said we were a couple. “It’s fine.” I hustled ahead, trying to run from my feelings and catch up to Megan, who was practically sprinting across the cement floor and down the large corridor toward the editing suite. It was a no-frills place, or at least I thought it was until we entered the editing suite. We walked in to find massive monitors on almost every wall and enough computer and electronic equipment to start a Best Buy. The only source of light in the room illuminated from the monitors. Even so it was easy to make out Landon standing with his arms folded in front of a large hanging monitor showing photos of a dead woman’s hand. He was looking intently at the screen as if he were contemplating the meaning of the universe. Or, you know, trying to solve a crime. I began to get excited, wondering what secrets were under her dirty fingernails. DNA? Dirt that could be analyzed to tell us where she was from or where she had died? I had to hold myself back from running over and asking him if there was anything I could do or research for him.
