Page 41 of Restitution

“We already have guys on their way to his location,” Barry says, glancing at me when I frown. They must’ve got the information before I snuck away. “Can we leave now?”

Tobias looks at me. “You’re a terrible driver. Never get behind a wheel again.”

I roll my eyes.

Aria walks to her son, sniffling. “Are you okay?” she asks him, her chin dimpling as it trembles, looking at the dead girl on the ground. “Oh, my boy, are you okay?”

He doesn’t say anything, just pulls off his helmet, tosses aside his helmet and walks to her.

I never thought that watching Kade hug his mother would make me cry, but here I am.

She’s sobbing, hugging him, begging him to get in the car while Tobias leads them to the door. The older version of Kade huffs and stands by the door, holding it open. He glances over at me just as I wipe mascara from under my eyes.

“You good?” Tobias asks.

I nod back and rub my arm, trying not to look down at the river of blood currently sliding towards me. “I’m okay.”

Barry crouches down to Cassie’s corpse and checks her pulse. “She’s dead.”

Tobias frowns like a child just kicked his shin. “Of course she’s dead. Are your eyes working? Her brain is splattered on the ground, you fucking idiot.”

Barry mutters to himself then looks up at Kade’s dad. “I was just stating a fact.”

“A useless fact,” he counters. “Any others? You want to tell me the sky is blue while you’re at it?”

Aria tells them both to stop arguing, because it’s all they’ve been doing. Anything one says, the other challenges it, then they get into a pissing contest until Barry backs down or Tobias gets bored.

Tobias tells Barry to leave the body for Bernadette to find. He refuses, and they argue some more before, ultimately, Barry agrees to leave her body on the ground so it can be found and reported. Apparently, it’ll put a spotlight on Bernadette, and right now, that’s not what she needs. The public will feel sorry for her, they’ll hunt for the murder suspect, and hopefully, they’ll find some dirty little secrets about her underworld dealings.

I don’t climb into the same car as Kade – I follow Barry toanother, and Jason sits in the passenger seat as we follow everyone else. My leg bounces, and I lift my eyes to find Kade’s big brother staring at me.

“That was risky,” he says. “What if he really did kill you?”

I shrug. All I can do is shrug.

I lower my head and lean it against the car window, silence filling the car all the way back to the lodge. When we stop, Jason climbs out, and Barry locks the doors before I can open mine. “Don’t ever do that again, do you understand?”

“I was trying to help him.”

“By risking your life?”

“He said that if he completed the contra—”

“I don’t give a fuck, Stacey. If you ever sneak away from me and risk getting yourself killed, I’ll kill you myself.”

I narrow my eyes. “I’ll tell Lisa you’re threatening me.”

He scoffs and unclips his seat belt.

When I get out of the car, I pause on seeing Kade climb out the one in front. He pauses too, staring at me as he pulls up the fabric to cover his mouth, but I already see the purple line from the corner of his mouth, travelling down. He looks like he wants to speak. Aria says something to him, and he nods, not taking his eyes off me.

Even when he looks completely exhausted and drained of life, he’s handsome. His hair is longer, wavy, and his usual clean-shaven face is covered in stubble.

I like it.

I love him.

I’m still dizzy from the turn of events. We’re only a few footsteps from one another, with everything out in the open. No more secrets. No more lies. Nothing but the looming threat of Bernadette.