Page 64

Kayla glares between the four of us, then glances down at the bottle in her hands and undoes the cap, swigging some before placing it down on the bar.

Vero is the first to move closer. He doesn’t care if things are thrown at him, as he knows this is a situation he created and will do whatever it takes to make it right. I wait to see how this plays out.

He goes around the bar and she watches him, remaining silent. Vero stops right in front of her, and all his manic energy drains from his face. It’s not something I have seen before.

“I’m sorry,” he says. “So fucking sorry. I know what I did was wrong, and I won’t make excuses or pretend that it was okay. It wasn’t.”

Watching her face, I can see she wants to believe him, but she pulls back. Kayla is guarded, and I want to know why. Something has happened to her to make her like this. Having your walls up so fucking high is formed by trauma, and a sick part of me wants to break her open and see all of her broken parts.

She reaches up and places her hand against the side of his face. “I know you are.”

To Vero’s credit, he doesn’t push, staying quiet as he leans into her hand, needing the connection between them.

Clay uses the distraction to move closer to the bar, and Brawley follows him, his scowl toward Kayla not lessening. I know he is pissed that she walked away after saying she wouldn’t. When it comes to Vero, everything is black and white for him—there is no gray. He doesn’t get that Vero is a lot for some people. Even when they think they can handle him, most people can’t. It’s why the island is perfect for him. Everyone here has trauma, and everyone is broken—some beyond repair. There is no judgment when things get hard; we all band together and get shit done.

I stand back and watch, needing to understand the situation fully before I move. Right now, I am still working out what her angle is. Forgiveness doesn’t come that easy—not from someone like her. She is holding back, and rightfully so. She doesn’t trust us, which is a good instinct to have, and I respect it, even if I plan to dismantle it completely.

“You scared me,” Kayla whispers. “I looked at you and I didn’t know what you were going to do. I couldn’t reach you. That is what I need you to understand. The damage to the bar was one thing, but feeling so fucking helpless hurt me more.”

“I’m sorry,” he says, a tear rolling down his cheek, which she swipes away with her thumb.

“I don’t know why, but I couldn’t stay away. I was pissed and wanted to yell at you. To tell you that your flowers didn’t mean shit. Flowers are not a way to apologize.”

“Brawley wouldn’t let me kill someone by paper cuts and deliver them to you, so I thought flowers would be the next best thing.”

“No dead bodies either.” She shakes her head at him. “I need my workplace to be safe, so I can go in there and do my job. You and Clay can’t show up there and decide who can and can’t look at me.” She drops her hand from his face. “If you can’t give me that, then I don’t know how any of this will work.”

From the other side of the bar, Brawley makes a sound low in his throat. Kayla turns her head toward him slowly. He has his arms folded and is staring her down.

“You have something to say?” she asks.

“I warned you,” he says flatly. “I told you what would happen if you hurt him.”

Kayla laughs. “You think I hurt him in this situation?”

“You told him to get the fuck out of your life.”

“I did, because he destroyed the bar, he beat people up, and I don’t know if you know this, but that is not acceptable behavior, episode or not. It’s one thing to put yourself in danger, but when innocent people get hurt, that is not okay.”

Brawley says nothing; he just continues to stare at her.

“I’m here now, though,” she continues. “I needed time to cool down and then throw some shit—so sue me. But if you have made up your mind that I am the problem here, then punish me for a situation he caused, or let it go.”

Brawley’s face goes through a range of emotions; he protects Vero no matter what, but he knows she’s right. He looks over at Vero, who hasn’t taken his eyes off Kayla, almost as if he’s worried he’ll blink and she might disappear. Brawley drops his arms and relaxes without saying a word.

Kayla must see that it’s his way of letting it go and turns back to Vero. “I promise I’m not going anywhere, but I need you to understand it can’t happen again. I need that job, and my independence. I rely on myself, and you don’t understand what that means to me.”

“I hear you, I promise I do. If they have to chain me up when I get like that, I’ll do it. Banks microchipped me, so now I can be tracked as well.”

“HE WHAT?!” Brawley snaps, rage radiating off him. “I told you no—you’re not a fucking dog. I’ll kill him.”

I sidestep in front of the exit so Brawley can’t go and do anything stupid. It really isn’t the worst of Vero’s ideas—knowing where he is during an episode could be helpful. There have been too many times we have had to search for him for hours, not knowing where he is or if he’s hurt himself.

“It isn’t the worst idea, so how about we be calm about the situation,” I reassure everyone. “Vero is an adult, so if it’s something he chooses to do, you shouldn’t kill anyone. I may not think it was the best way to handle the situation, but it made sense to Vero, and if it is something he wants, we need to respect his choice.”

“I need you to be able to find me, and this is the only way I thought would work. And I won’t ever say this out loud ever again, but Vesper was right, you all need to stop babying me. I need to be held accountable for my actions. I fucked up and I am owning that, but I was so worried about losing something that I was lost in myself, and I hate feeling like that. Please accept this is the choice I have made.”

“Works for me,” Clay says. “The less time I have to spend looking for your ass, the better.”