Page 68 of The Pact
I supposeinstantlyis meant to comfort those left behind, but it doesn’t.
Because the last second of my sister’s life is reduced to a word.
I close my eyes.
Maybe if they stay closed for long enough, I’ll wake up, and this will all just be a nightmare.
When I feel the car stop, I open my eyes, and we’re in my garage.
I make my way to the door and try to push the numbers on the keypad to open the door, but my fingers don’t work.
Presley moves to my side and opens the door, guiding me inside.
“Sit,” she says gently, steering me toward the couch.
I do as she said and sit on the couch. The same couch we’ve almost crossed lines on. Where we watch movies and argue about superheroes.
Everything looks the same, which somehow makes this worse.
I can hear Presley moving around my house quietly. She brings me water, but I can’t drink it because I’m not sure I’d be able to keep it down.
She takes my phone from where it fell out of my pocket on the cushion beside me, then sits on the coffee table in front of me between my legs.
“Saint,” she says softly. “Do you know where the kids are?”
Fuck.
The kids.
I’m their legal guardian.
My body reacts before my brain does.
I look up at her, and it feels like the first time I’m really seeing her since we left her dad’s office.
Her eyes are red, and her face is pale. And because I know her better than anyone, I know she’s holding herself together for me. To be strong for me.
“With Chris’s parents,” I manage to get out, my voice shredded.
Presley nods. “Okay. Their number is in your phone?”
I blink, trying to register her question.
Chris’s parents. They have the kids. In North Carolina.
Do they know?
My stomach rolls, and I stand up too fast, then sit back down when the room shifts.
Presley grabs my arms to steady me. “Easy, Saint. Just stay still for a minute while we figure this out, okay?”
“The kids.”
“I know. We need to get in touch with Chris’s parents right now. So I need you to think. Do you have their number in here?”
“I need—” I choke on the words. “I need to call?—”
“And I’m going to help you do that.” She rubs my arms.
