Page 87 of Burned

“You survived.”

“I let him?—”

Her voice is sharper now. “You survived.”

“Oh, Rin.” She reaches for me. She leans out of her chair as far as she can and grabs my hand.

“I should have told you,” I whisper.

Cass’s eyes fill. “You should have told me.”

My face crumples. “I couldn’t.”

“I know.”

“I thought it would kill you.”

“It might have.” Her mouth twists. “But not knowing didn’t save me. It only left you alone. And he wins again.”

“He always won.” The sob breaks free then. Ugly. Loud.

Cass pulls my hand to her chest and holds it there like she can anchor me by force.

“I should have protected you better.”

My older sister, damaged, helpless, hopeless, could never have protected me.

And I couldn’t protect myself. But I thought I was protecting them.

With my silence. My compliance. My shame.

“I never should have let him into our lives.” She grips my hand so hard it hurts.

“Stop,” I croak. I hate crying. I hate all of this.

She lowers herself awkwardly, painfully, to the floor beside me. It is not graceful.

It is not easy. It takes longer than she wants, making her jaw clench.

But she does it.

She sits on the floor with me. Like before. Like we are girls again, hiding from the world under the bedcovers.

Then she wraps her arms around me.

I fall apart. Completely.

After a long time, Cass says, “I’m going to kill him.”

A watery laugh hiccups out of me. “Lucian already did.”

“I’ll kill him again.”

“I think Lucian called dibs on the corpse too.”

“We’ll share,” she says. Cass strokes my hair once, clumsy and gentle. “Does Lucian know?”

“Yes. I told him,” I half-truth.