Page 165 of Corpse Roads
“Got it, thanks.”
Firing off a text to Leighton, he presses a kiss to my temple before heading back out to the elevator. The minute he disappears, I let my mask crumble.
If he knew how scared I was, I’d never be allowed to go. The thought of returning to Laura, my childhood and all the dark memories I’ve been pushing back is unthinkable.
I have no choice.
This could be our chance.
Steeling my spine, I make my way upstairs to Hunter’s office. Inside, it’s a disorganised mess. The last few weeks of chaos have clearly wreaked havoc on his tidy headspace.
Knocking back some pills, I glance over his cluttered desk. There’s a smashed photo frame nestled amongst the stacks of paperwork. I dodge shards of broken glass to stroke my thumb over three familiar faces.
I’ve never seen Enzo, Hunter and Theo look so happy and content. Nestled between them, a pink-haired beauty grins at the camera. Her smile radiates so much warmth. Instinctively, I know it’s Alyssa.
“I’ll keep them safe,” I whisper to the ghost.
“Hunter? You in here?”
Startled, I drop the frame so hard, it cracks against the desk. More shards of glass spill across the paperwork as someone enters the room.
“Harlow.” Theo sounds surprised as he stops behind me. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. Thought Hunter was up here.”
“He’s just gone back downstairs.”
Theo’s eyes land on the smashed frame. He visibly swallows before looking back up at me.
“He spoke to you?” he asks in a strained voice.
“I’m coming with you guys.”
“You sure that’s a good idea?”
“Do you not want me there?” I ask in return.
“I want you to be safe,” he answers with a sigh. “But I actually vouched for this idea. I think it’s important for you to be there.”
I blink in surprise. “You do?”
He moves to lean against the wall, his glasses shielded by a loose curl. “I admire your strength. I’m not sure I’d do the same in your position.”
Heat spreads across my cheeks. I have no idea what to say. Our late-night conversations are about books, theories, obscure ideas and observations about a world that scares us both to death.
Theo’s very philosophical and painfully intelligent. It’s an attractive, if not slightly awkward, quality to have. I’ve admired him for a while now. I didn’t expect it to be returned though.
“Listen,” he begins. “The thing is… well, um, it’s a little bit complicated, you know?”
“Uh, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Sighing in frustration, he scrubs his eyes beneath his glasses. “I swear, I had it. Now all the words are jumbled up in my head.”
Taking a tentative step closer, I rest a hand on his shoulder. “It’s just me. You can tell me anything.”
His pale-blue eyes scrape over me, assessing and afraid. I’m stunned as he takes my hand from his shoulder and holds it instead.
“I guess I wanted to apologise,” he tries again. “The others have looked after you while I stayed away. I feel… shitty about that.”
My eyebrows knit together. “Theo… you gave Laura back to me to say goodbye. You’ve kept the case going, working night after night. More than that, you’ve been a good friend.”