Page 81
Story: These Shattered Memories
It’s soft at first, almost tentative, but loud enough to cut through the static in my head and the loud vibrating on the floor. I freeze, holding my breath.Did I imagine that?
The knock comes again—louder this time, more insistent.
“Alex? It’s me,” a familiar voice calls from the other side of the door. “I saw your car outside.”
Kane.
The tension in my shoulders eases almost immediately at his muffled deep voice. I exhale shakily, closing my eyes for a moment to collect myself before rising to my feet.
I pad toward the door, and when I open it, Kane is standing there, rain-dampened and casual in his jeans and waxed jacket.His hair clings to his forehead, droplets sliding down his temples.
“You okay?” Kane asks, tilting his head, his hands casually stuffed into his jacket pockets. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
I nod too quickly. “Yeah. Fine.”
But the uneasy prickle in the back of my neck tells me everything is far from fine if that message is anything to go by.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, moving aside to let him in.
“You didn’t see my text?” he asks when I turn back to him.
I peer over to my couch where my phone is still on the floor. I rush over to pick it up, swiping away from the ominous email and surely enough, a message from Kane sits in my messages.
“Oh,” I say, my voice still hoarse.
He looks at me carefully. “I heard about Halle’s case. The Arnolds dropped it, right? A few of us were at The Mast tonight and I thought to come over and check on you, especially after yesterday.”
I glance at him, trying to find the right words. “Uh, yeah. Thanks.”
This time, he frowns. “Is everything okay?”
I look down at the phone in my hand. “I don’t know,” I say honestly. “I got a message…”
“Okay…” he trails, still looking confused. “From whom?”
I place the phone on the table, my palms lying flat on the wood as I try to steady myself. “Remember when I said someone had sent me an email saying they would help me get Halle’s case dismissed?”
He nods next to me. “Yeah. What did the message say?”
I take in a steadying breath. “Nothing really. Just that they know I broke our deal.”
Kane frowns, eyes scanning me with concern. “I thought whoever was sending you those emails was the one who got the case dismissed. That was the deal, right?”
My stomach knots as I nod. “Yes, but I asked Rowan to help instead.”
He doesn’t look surprised, instead he just nods. “Rowan? Last time we spoke, you said you weren’t in contact anymore.”
“We weren’t,” I say. “But he—” I stop myself.
I can’t tell him about Key or any of the other stuff, really. I can’t tell him that it feels like I’m picking Rowan over the OCU. It hits me then that this is the conflict for Rowan and I. My life now can never match his. I’ll have to keep lying to the people I love to protect him and ultimately, The Snake.
“Alex?” Kane says after a moment. “Is Rowan behind all of this?”
I shake my head, standing up straight. “What? No, of course not.”
He doesn’t look convinced. “Are you sure? Your judgement could be clouded. You two have been involved before.” He licks his bottom lip, his hands landing on his hips. “Are you sleeping with him again?”
The question hits like a slap. I flinch. And that’s all Kane needs. His frown deepens, his scrutiny growing sharper. He reads me too well—so much like Halle does.
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81 (Reading here)
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134