Page 9 of Fall
Her eyes fall immediately to the ground in shame, and I wince at the pain in my heart right before a bubble of anger erupts from my soul. Iknowshe didn’t do anything wrong, even if she doesn’t believe it, and it pisses me off that she’s taking on the burden as if she did.
I grab her chin and make her look at me. “YOU didn’t do anything wrong, Cele.”
She shifts her chin out of my grip and looks away, still holding my hand. “It doesn’t matter that I didn’t do anything wrong. I’m still the cheating whore who was caught on camera, whether it’s the truth or not.”
Sigh.
“We’re going to go inside, enjoy our fucking lattes, and take it one step at a time. I’m not running, and neither are you.” I huff in frustration, using the fire inside me to walk us through the front doors of the cafe with my head held high.
I’m not mad at her-not in the slightest. I’m just tired of feeling like I’m not in control of my own damn life and watching good people suffer.
The familiar aroma welcomes us, and I only hesitate for a moment. The cafe looks exactly like it did when Micah and I had walked in all those weeks ago. The only difference now is that the place is bustling with people. People with not a care in the world that someone was shot here.
We get to our self-declared booth to find Taylor already there. Unfortunately, so is Justin.
“Hey, ladies,” Taylor says with a hopeful grin.
Cele scowls but slides in next to him, anyway. The asshole neglected to mention that he would have company when we all decided to meet here. What the fuck is he doing? He knows Celeste doesn’t want to see Justin.
“What are you playing at, Taylor?” I ask in annoyance.
He raises his hands in submission. “We need allies, Eves. At least until Micah… well, you know.”
“And of all people, it had to be Justin?”
Justin slides out of the booth to let me sit on the inside. “I’m what you have,” he says with a shrug.
“Why help? You don’t owe me anything,” I ask skeptically.
“Because Micah is a Knight.”
I snort at his response and stare out the window. “So are Caleb and Elijah.”
“They aren’t thinking clearly. It’s easier to believe the obvious lie than the hidden truth.”
“You would know, wouldn’t you?” I mumble back. “How’s Micah?”
Justin shifts in his seat. “Honestly, I don’t know. I mean, he’s not dead, but none of us have been able to see him. As far as I know, he’s still in the ICU.”
My head swings in his direction. “What do you mean none of you have been able to see him?”
Justin looks at Taylor before answering me. “We’ve been tasked with Knights’ stuff. Elijah’s dad is taking care of Micah while we get work done.”
I momentarily shut down at the thought, but a moment is all I can afford. I can’t let just the thought of Elijah’s dad control me, and I refuse to give any reason for the people at this table to question me about it.
The rest of our awkward morning is repeating what happened during spring break and at the cafe. I don’t mention Alik by name, but give them enough for them to understand that Ryan dove head first into stupidville.
At the mention of the Reaper and the Ferryman, I notice Taylor and Justin exchange a look that makes me wonder how much they know about the Bianchi family and their associates. It also makes me question what Psi Kappa Psi is into.
Was Parker telling the truth about what they do? I’m going to have to ask them, but now isn’t the time. I’ll have to unpack that when I’m actually ready to hear the answers, if I’ll ever be ready for that.
Celeste stays quiet, looking at her latte, completely uncomfortable sitting in front of Justin. I catch him glancing her way more often than not, but she refuses to look at him.
Good for you, Cele.
We all agree that the best thing for us to do is to go back to campus and let this play out, despite Celeste’s hesitation. As we leave the cafe to head to campus, I look around once more at the sea of faces that fill the place.Where were they when Micah was shot?
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