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I let Casper explain everything because I’m not sure I could get the words out. The weight of guilt presses down heavily on my body. I avert my eyes, unable to look at his family while he explains what a disaster my parents are.
When Casper finishes, they know so much more than I ever wanted to share beyond Casper and the girls. It feels awful to have it all out there, but I don’t have a choice. My father did this.
“Oh gosh, Ainsley. I’m so sorry you went through that,” Penelope says.
I do a double take. I’m the reason Casper was stabbed, yet they’re not trying to chase me out of his room. My jaw falls slack, and I can’t think of a single thing to say.
“Do you think he was following you?” Penelope asks.
Casper shrugs. “I don’t know. Maybe. I’m just glad he found me and not Ainsley.”
I’m not. Would my dad actually do that to me? We’re the reason the cops were hunting them, sure, but to kill us over it?
Drugs. He’s not a normal person on drugs—never has been. I wouldn’t trust him with my life.
“What was he on?” Casper asks his dad.
I listen like I’m watching a movie, as if this isn’t my family they’re talking about.
“Oliver was unsure, but they should find out soon enough. How much of this do the police know? I should call him back,” Frederick replies.
He’s on first name terms with a police officer. I think it’s safe to say that Casper takes after his dad. He has a few of those in his contact list, too. Was Oliver the one who agreed to arrest me?
“We reported it and told them everything we know,” I say. “I had a couple of missed calls in the early hours. No number, but it was probably my mum. She’ll be furious that I gave the cops their names after the break-in.”
“I fucking hate her.” Casper growls.
I’m right there with you.
Mother or not, she’s the reason I almost lost him, and that’s not something I will ever forgive. What I went through pales in comparison.
“I wonder if my mum knew what Dad was going to do,” I say, shuddering at the thought. She might hate me, but surely she wouldn’t sit back while he did that.
“Don’t stress about that. The police have this arsehole now,” Casper says. “I won’t let either of them come near you. I’m guessing you haven’t told Jess and Bill yet?”
I shake my head. “I will once visiting time is over.”
Which is much sooner than I’d like.
“They’re going to be upset you didn’t call them sooner,” Casper says, and his voice is a little too chipper for my liking.
“Are you going to enjoy that?”
“A little.”
“Wow, you really can’t help yourself, can you?”
His smile is wide and bright. “It’s our thing, sweetheart.”
EPILOGUE
Casper
Ainsley’s still sleeping in my bed with the quilt kicked down to her feet, revealing her soft skin. Long blonde hair is sprawled over the pillow. She’s so fucking perfect, I can’t help staring.
Her cap and gown are strewn in various locations around my room where I couldn’t get her naked fast enough.
We picked an awful day to move—the day after her graduation, when we were always going to be hungover. Besides a dull headache, I don’t feel too bad. The amount my girl had to drink, however, makes me think she’s going to suffer.
