Page 147 of Before We Break

“He’s better off with you. At least for now.” He slips his hands into his pockets and stares down at the waves crashing against the shore. “Thank you for being there when I couldn’t. Emma told me about the ASL lessons and everything.”

“I’d do anything for that kid.”

“Good. Go get his Cici back.”

I don’t give it a second thought. Why bother when the first one is all I’ve been thinking about for weeks? I slip on my helmet and climb onto my bike. The engine rumbles to life, and another echoes to my right. I look over and see Jonah on the back of his Harley. He nods, and I take off towards Oak Ridge with his figure fading in my rearview.

FORTY-TWO

CRASH & BURN

♫ Broken - Lifehouse

CLIO

A frantic knock sounds at the cabin door, and I drop the half-folded T-shirt into the laundry basket, rushing to answer it. On the other side is a man I’ve never seen, but he looks vaguely familiar. I flip on the light to get a better view.

“Are you Clio?” he asks between heaving breaths.

“Yes. And you are—” I don’t have to look hard to know exactly who’s standing in my doorway under the flickering porch light. He’s an older version of Auggie. “Jonah?”

He nods jerkily, trying to catch his breath. I look over his shoulder for a car, but I don’t see anything. Did he run here?

“Where’s Noah?”

He doesn’t answer immediately, and my heart lurches. I grab the front of his shirt and shout in his face. “Where is Noah?”

“There was an accident. He’s in the hospital.”

I shove him, and he stumbles down the top step as I grab my keys off the hook and slip on my shoes. “How did you get here?”

He follows me to my car. “My bike. It’s parked up at the main house. They told me where to find you.”

“Get in.”

The door slams shut as I gun it down the gravel road. “What happened?”

“He crashed his bike.” Jonah grips the handle above the window as I take the curve onto the main roads. “Look, I don’t want to be that guy, but Noah will kill me if I don’t tell you to put your fucking seatbelt on. Considering the circumstances, he’d be more than justified.”

A few feet up the road at the stop sign, I pull my seatbelt on with a dramatic flair. “Better?”

“Much.”

“Tell me everything.”

“He was coming to find you. I was following behind on my bike. Just before the exit, a deer ran out into the road, and he swerved to miss it. I called an ambulance, and they said they were bringing him to Oak Ridge Memorial. Emma’s at the hospital waiting for an update. She sent me to get you.”

“He was coming to find me? Why?”

“He can tell you when he wakes up.”

“What if…”

“He will wake up, Clio.”

I park in the first available spot in the lot and rush in through the sliding doors, stopping dead in my tracks when a rush of déjà vu hits me. The last time I was here was for Lexi, and the outcome…

I close my eyes and take a deep breath.