Page 92 of The Player

“No,” Adam retorted. “It’s our turn to cash in. He can’t get away with what he’s done to you and Bryony. He needs to face the consequences.”

But I couldn’t shake the nagging doubt in my head.

Yes, he was a fucking dead man.

He’d hurt Bee.

He’d killed her father.

He’d taken us and hidden us from the world, making us act out his sick and twisted fantasies.

But life had been unbearably cruel for him. It’d turned Zye, the silent boy, into Isaiah, the psychotic killer. I still hated him with every fibre of my being for what he’d done to us, but knowing the reasons why he did it made everything feel… complicated. Life was a bastard sometimes, and sometimes you had to take that bastard by the neck and wring it until the voices in your head told you it was all okay again.

Was this it for him?

Would those voices stop now?

Probably not.

If I’d learned one thing in life, it was that no matter how many demons you slayed, there were always more waiting for you right around the corner.

Isaiah had slayed some of his demons, but at the end of the day, he was still trapped in hell, still battling the life he’d left but it had never left him. Silent boy had gotten stronger, grown claws and fangs, but he wasn’t free. I doubted he ever would be.

“Iwasat Clivesdon,” I explained, feeling guilt creeping into my bones because after all was said and done, I’d turned a blind eye to the pain of that place, just the same as Paul Masters. The only difference was, I was a kid when it happened. But I could’ve done more.

I gestured to the corridor that led to the chapel. “He was there too. That’s why he did what he did. There were people there that needed to be dealt with.”

Adam’s jaw clenched, the muscle twitching as he listened to what I said.

“How long were you at Clivesdon for?” I asked him.

He took a moment, let out a sigh then said, “I was there for two years.”

“Jesus. That place was grim,” I stated, and Adam nodded. “How did you manage two years of it?”

“Because I made sure no one ever messed with me. I caused fights, started shit. Animals prey on the weak, and I wasn’t weak. But that’s what they were. Animals.” Adam gave the hint of a smile, and added, “I didn’t tell them my real name. I thought I’d be smart and use an alias. I was mad on Star Wars, so I told them my name was Obi, you know, Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

And just like that, all the puzzle pieces started to fall into place.

Recognition of what’d happened back then, that I’d met Adam before and I didn’t even know it, knocked the wind right out of me.

Coincidences, fate, all that mystical shit never affected me.

I didn’t believe in any of it.

But I was starting to now.

“I remember you.” I stared at him like I was seeing him in a whole new light. “I slept in your dorm. You used to push your bed against the door at night.”

“Mate, I’m so sorry,” Adam replied. “I honestly don’t remember. If I did, I would’ve said something years ago. I blocked out all memories of that place. It was a hellhole.”

I heard what he said, but I carried on.

“I was with my little brother; you were ready to tear me a new one ‘cos I went out the room after lights-out once. Don’t you remember that at all?”

Adam shook his head. “Nope. Still doesn’t ring a bell. Sorry.”

I hesitated before asking my next question.