Page 88 of This Stays Between Us

I wait for him to turn, knowing that when he does, we will be entirely and utterly exposed. For the second time tonight, I feel Declan’s hand snake silently into mine, and I squeeze back.

Randy stands in front of the closet door for a moment, his spindly limbs suddenly looking larger, more formidable.

I don’t dare to move an inch, to even inhale.

And as if my prayer has been answered, he turns in the opposite direction, walking away from us. He stops for a second as he looks to the right, taking in the backyard, and there’s something sad in his gesture.

And then he continues onwards, through the front door without pausing. Seconds later comes the telltale click of the lock in the door, but still, I don’t dare to move. I don’t know how long I wait there, long after I hear the engine of Randy’s truck roar to life, his tires crunching on the dirt parking lot as he pulls out, until Declan nudges me.

His touch sparks me back to life.

I rush to the back door, throwing it open and racing outside, although I already know what I’m going to see.

A fire roars in the pit, flagrantly violating all the wildfire warnings. An unidentifiable metallic smell emanates from its source.

“The computer,” I say flatly, watching the flames lick the darksky. Even with the warmth from the fire, I’m cold. It’s an unbearable, bone tickling cold that invades my skin from every which way. I begin to shiver, slightly at first, then uncontrollably.

Because I realize what this means.

There’s nothing left to connect Ellery or anybody other than me to Phoebe’s murder. Nothing to even show that Randy had been filming us.

The AFP are coming in a few hours to arrest me. With the proof they have, I’ll no doubt be convicted, sentenced to rot in some Australian prison. Forced to spend the rest of my life in this country.

Just like Phoebe.

Suddenly, I feel movement behind me, and Declan is there. I fall into him, my legs giving out, tears pooling in my eyes.

“Hey, hey,” he says, pulling me up to face him. “It’s going to be okay.”

But I can’t bring myself to meet his eye.

He brushes back the hair from my forehead so delicately that it makes the tears come faster.

“I’m going to do everything I can to protect you from this. I’ll stay with you in Australia for as long as it takes.”

Slowly, I lift my chin to meet his gaze. Those hazel eyes that I used to know so well stare back at me. And the meaning of what he’s saying slowly trickles through the shock of the last few minutes.

I’m not alone.

They’re the words I’ve longed to hear all this time. Since I returned to Australia without Phoebe. Since I lost my mother. Since I forged a life based in solitude and isolation and guilt.

Before I can stop myself, I lean forward, pressing my lips againsthis. I know this isn’t the time and it’s certainly not the place, but I can’t help myself.

His lips are tentative at first, fleeting, as though he wants to resist. But he must reach the same conclusion that I do. That another time may never come.

And then he’s kissing me back, hard. He lifts me up, and I wrap my legs tightly around his waist.

Effortlessly, he carries me back to the Inn, where I shove the door open behind me, my lips never straying from his. He leads me up the stairs, and as if on autopilot, he guides me to the room he was staying in, using the key he still has to open the door, and we tumble inside.

He lays me down gently on his twin-size bed, his lips exploring every part of my skin, and it’s only a moment before I lose myself to him entirely.

42

Claire

Now

When my eyes open, I’m met with that startling feeling of having no idea where I am or how I got here. Seconds later, it hits me.