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Aunt Masie loads her stuff into the back of the truck, then she turns back to me. She comes back, hugging me one last time, and she whispers in my ear.
“Remember, Leah, never trust anyone.”
It’s a daunting promise to make, because I want to trust people. So I don’t say anything as she walks away, giving me a brittle smile before loading up with the coldest man I’ve ever known.
If Aunt Masie knew exactly how cruel he was, she wouldn’t be loading up with him right now.
But he’d hurt her if I told. So I’ll carry the secret to my grave.
Zee nibbles on my neck, forcing me to wake up. The sun is raining down in the bedroom, making it impossible to sleep in.
“I think my aunt knew what I was,” I say softly, trying to piece together things. Maybe I’m just making the memories something they’re not.
“It’s possible,” he murmurs against my neck.
I grab my purse from beside the bed, and he holds onto me loosely as I dig out a picture. “What’s this?” he asks as he takes it.
“My aunt. My only family.”
He smiles as he runs his finger over me in the picture, but then his eyes narrow as he focuses on the distant background.
“What about him?” He points to Victor in the shadows. I never even noticed him photobombing.
“That’s Victor. He was friends with my aunt. They did a lot of big hunts—deer mostly. My aunt owns a lot of land in various states, and he would stop in while passing from one location to another. He often brought along groups who wanted guaranteed game.”
He kisses my arm. “Was he ever mean to you?”
My brow furrows. “Why would you ask that?”
“Because you said you were treated like shit when you were younger.”
It’s cute how pissed he looks just saying those words. No one has ever gotten truly upset on my behalf. They got upset with how I handled things, but not truly upset for me. Other than my aunt, but even she often seemed detached.
“No,” I lie… Well, it’s not really a lie. He only ever hit me once, and it surprised me more than it hurt.
If I told Zee that, there’s no doubt he’d track him down and rip his throat out, so I decide to stick with the lie. Because… I mean he’d rip his throat out very literally.
“The kids at school were brutal, but not Victor. He was just brusque and always unnerving. He wasn’t around all the time. In fact, his visits were long but sporadic, so it’s not like I grew up with him or anything.”
He kisses my shoulder before setting the picture down on the table.
“You had redder hair there,” he notes.
I nod. “It started darkening a while back.” My eyes flick to his blue tips. They’re constantly changing colors, and I really love that.
“What about you? Your family?”
He looks down like he doesn’t want to talk about it, but he surprises me when he answers.
“My sister is the only one still alive. My parents died a few years back. I kept up with them, but it’s better they thought I died than to know the truth. They couldn’t handle it.”
“You don’t know that—”
“I do know that,” he says, smiling sadly at me. “I told them. I went back to them.”
My brow wrinkles, and he runs his thumb over my confused forehead.
“Kane taught me control, and I went back, hoping to ease their hearts with the comfort of knowing I was alive. But… My father actually passed out, and my mother went into hysterics when I showed her what I was. She tried to fucking stake me.”
