Page 88 of Meet Me in Ivy Falls

The plastic chair squeaked beneath my weight as I leaned in and set my head on the bed.

The damage was done. My only task now had to be helping her. Once she was discharged, she had to go back to rehab. I worried she’d fight me and then I’d have to consider a court order. Could you commit your twenty-four-year-old sister when she was clearly a danger to herself?

My thoughts began to spiral. If the police charged her with a crime, she’d need a lawyer.

From the day she was born, I’d always looked out for Piper. Protected her from the monsters she swore were under her bed or hiding in the closet. In elementary school, I hovered near her classroom until she made it safely inside. My parents told us that it was our job to look out for each other. That one day they’d be gone and all we’d have was each other. We both knew they meant when they were old and gray so neither of us were prepared when that fact became a reality too soon.

‘Beck?’ Piper’s childlike voice shot a chill across my skin. I pulled the white plastic chair closer to the edge of her bed. ‘Where am I?’ she asked.

‘Memorial Springs Hospital.’

With bloodshot eyes, she glanced at the stark bed sheets and the tubes spiraling out of her arms. A beat later the tears followed. ‘I’m so, so sorry.’

Her heart rate clicked up a notch and I squeezed her hand.

‘It’s all right.’

‘But the house—’ She started to sob.

‘Don’t worry. It all can be fixed.’

Her shoulders shook as tears coated her cheeks. ‘Torran must hate me.’

‘No. All she wants is for you to get better.’

She took a shuddering breath. ‘You have to believe me, Beck, I tried to stop them from coming in, but Alex told me I had to pay off my debt.’

‘Who’s Alex?’ I asked.

‘He’s a guy I met in a club in downtown Nashville.’ The tears flowed freely down her cheeks and onto the paper-thin sheets. ‘When I was high, I told him all about the house. How we were making it beautiful to honor Mom and Dad’s memory. He forced me to take him there, then his friends showed up and they started tearing things from the walls saying they could sell it all…’

Her entire body shook and her heart rate climbed higher. I moved onto the bed and pulled her into my arms. ‘We can’t go back, Piper. All we can do now is get you help. The rest will sort itself out later.’

I wanted to ask about what happened after I dropped her at the airport. The job she supposedly had waiting. But all those questions stayed jammed in my throat as she swiped away her tears.

‘Am I going to jail?’

‘I don’t know. A cop has been here off and on waiting to question you. He needs to know how you got into the house and any details you can provide about that Alex guy and his friends.’

‘He wasn’t arrested?’

‘I’m not sure. We were told a bunch of people scattered when the police showed up.’

The door creaked open and Torran stepped inside the room. Her blonde ponytail flopped to the side and purple hollows colored the area below her beautiful green eyes.

‘Is it all right if I come in?’ she asked.

While I ached to touch her, I wanted to finish my conversation with Piper in private.

‘Can you give us a minute?’ I heard my voice and knew it was too rough.

Hurt rippled across her face but she backed out of the room.

‘Wait,’ Piper called. ‘Beck, I need to talk to Torran alone.’

I reached out and gripped her hand. ‘You sure?’

‘Yes. I need to start making amends again.’ The words tumbled out of her mouth in a way that made me want to wrap her in my arms and protect her from the cruelty of the world.