Page 94 of Surviving Slater

"You can't know that for sure," I said, determined to let him see it from another viewpoint. "How do you know that if you hadn't said something things wouldn't have ended the same way?"

He continued to stare at me, and I could see it wasn't something he had considered.

Chapter Twenty-Three

The encounter was stillon my mind later that week when I received another call from Connor. It was four o'clock in the afternoon. I was finished with classes and on my way back to the apartment. It was Friday so I usually got some clothes and then spent the weekend with Slater. We hadn't reached the stage of me leaving stuff at his place yet.

"Hi, Connor."

"Hi, Jordan," he said. "I have some good news."

I stopped. He must have finally discovered how Shannon had died.

"What did you find?" I asked.

"I found her." His statement left me more confused.

"You mean the grave?" I questioned.

"What are you talking about?" Connor asked, sounding as confused as I was.

"Shannon, Slater's sister, is dead."

There were several seconds of silence.

"No, she isn't. I found her."

I clutched the phone tighter as I tried to take in his news. Shannon was alive?

"That's impossible," I said in a whisper. My mind was trying to figure out how it was possible Slater mourned a sister who wasn't dead. It made no sense.

"The guy who has been on this has assured me she is the person we are looking for. I'm going to check it out," he said. "Do you want to come with me?"

"When?" I asked, still stunned.

"I can have a car pick you up in an hour," he said. "I'll have a jet waiting for you."

A plane ride. "Where is she?" I asked. I had never been on a plane before and felt nervous about traveling on my own. But I had to do this for Slater. If Connor was right and by some miracle Shannon was still alive, I had to see it for myself. I couldn't trust anyone else to do this for me.

I had peeked into his soul and had seen the grief he lived with. I couldn't risk telling him his sister was alive if there was any possibility it might not be true. It would destroy him.

"New York."

I tried to plan in my head. I usually spent weekends with Slater, so if I wanted to go with Connor, I would have to make up an excuse.

This was massive. I couldn't tell him his sister was alive unless I made sure it was true. But would confronting her work? Would she look like him? There was only one way to find out.

"Yes."

As soon as he disconnected the call, I called Slater.

"What's up?" he asked. I felt the pang of guilt for the lies I was going to tell him.

"I have to go away this weekend," I told him, hurrying along the corridor. I didn't have a lot of time to get back to my apartment to pack.

"Where are you going?" he asked, his voice casual.

"I need to go and see my mom this weekend," I lied. "She called and guilted me into going back home for a couple of days."