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PROLOGUE
THEA
14 yearsago
“There’s nowhere for you to hide,” my mom’s screech sounded through the thin walls of the trailer we shared.
Something shattered, and I winced, hoping it wasn’t another plate. We were down to three.
“I knew I should have gotten rid of you when I had the chance.”
Her words slammed against the iron-clad wall I’d built around myself. She could no longer penetrate it. Her barbs no longer hurt. My flimsy door, on the other hand, wouldn’t hold up to the assault she’d wage against it soon.
Pushing my small window open, I slipped outside, landing hands first in the overgrown grass. The trailer park I’d lived in my whole life backed onto parkland, the perfect place to disappear.
Evading my mom had become a skill I’d excelled at from an early age. It was a necessity for survival.
I’d been using the window as soon as I’d realized nothing I did or said could stop her raging anger.
And like every time things at home became too much to bear, I made my way to my best friend’s house. Everleigh’s parents were barely ever home, and her housekeeper didn’t mind the extra mouth to feed.
At least the days I stayed with her I didn’t have to go to bed hungry. I worked at a small diner in town, but the money didn’t stretch far. Not after paying for rent and utilities.
The smart thing would be to leave my family far behind. But instead, I scrambled to hold on to the pathetic life I had. But what else was there? I had no money of my own and no way to get out of Falina. The small town was the only place I knew.
Not looking behind me—because that would take time I didn’t have—I sprinted for the line of trees.
“Get back here, you ungrateful little shit. You owe me.” I could hear her yelling across the trailer park, but nobody would care. They’d gotten blind and deaf to what was going on over the years.
I made my way through the thick underbrush, scraping my arms and legs.
When the first property with perfectly cut green grass came into view, I sighed in relief. The new housing development was beautiful, and I’d always dreamed of living in such a nice place. There were no potholes in the road, and none of the houses had broken windows. I could walk down the road without getting hassled.
Maybe in another life this is where I’d end up instead of the moldy trailer I call home.
When I saw Everleigh’s house, I sped up. It had become my sanctuary. I didn’t know what I would have done without her all these years.
I walked around the house to the gate leading into the backyard. Everleigh had claimed the basement, and I had a key to the door that would get me straight there.
The loud noise of the TV greeted me as soon as I pushed the door open. Once I made it down the stairs, a familiar sight greeted me: my best friend and her little brother hanging out on her couch, watching cartoons.
Archer had only just turned ten but had been part of our trio since I could remember. We’d all been inseparable since meeting six years ago. Archer was just four back then, but we’d dragged him along with us wherever we went.
It was either that or he’d have to stay with the housekeeper. Everleigh had been more of a mom to him than his own ever had, making sure he went to school, put bandages on his many scrapes and made sure he had clothes that fit him.
He was a carefree kid, always smiling and moving around. But he was also incredibly smart, having skipped a grade and on his way to skip another.
Archer spotted me first and jumped up from where he perched on the backrest of the couch. “Finally. I’ve been waiting for you to get here for hours.”
I greeted him with a high five. “What’s up, little dude?”
He ran up to the coffee table and picked up a case, waving it over his head. “I got a new video game.”
“Is itGuitar Hero?” I asked the same question every time he bought a new game. It was the only one I knew how to play. But he usually convinced me to play with him anyway, only to beat me within the first five minutes.
I didn’t mind because it was entertaining to watch his excitement and enthusiasm when he played.
“Of course not. Will you play with me later?”
