My hands shook and my ears ached. The sound of gunshots invaded them and I shut my eyes, I stumbled back a second time and landed right into the wall, My eyes shot open as I struggled to breathe, flashes from that night hit my rays.“Danielle? Are you alright?” in a moment, I could feel Tyler’s warmth and smell his cologne. It took me a few seconds to. muster enough stamina to look into his eyes.“He—He knew him,” I breathed and I felt my face contort in confusion, It felt like I was going to go into overload soon, between the trail, Alice’s actions, Rye’s release, and now this revelation.“Wait, what? Who? What are you saying?” Tyler asked. He was practically carrying my weight as I tried to balance on my two feet, My legs wobbled.“Aiden, Aiden Horan, Derek paid him every month for their long years! They knew each other!” I breathed as I dragged my feet across the ground and began to pace around, it seemed like Tyler had taken advantage of the time I spent struggling to walk and pac
“J-Jared?” I sputtered.“Danielle! I need your help! Please help me!” He begged with glistening eyes.“Ho— How did you get in here?!” I asked as I tried to stand up but he pulled me down. “Please! She’s going to kill me—” He cried as he tugged on my hand. I glanced frantically at the door, Why had Tyler or Leonardo not come in?“Who's going to kill you?!” I asked as I tried to pull away from him, but the hair on my neck stood and it suddenly felt like I was in some weird horror movie. I eventually pulled away from him and slammed him into the wall, I struggled to breathe as I stared at his distressed form. “I- I didn’t want it to go this far, I promise Danielle, This wasn’t the plan.” He expressed in a sorrowful tone. “What’s going on?” I whispered with my hand over my chest, I was still struggling to deal with how weird this whole situation was, and most importantly. How he got in.Silence reigned for a few seconds before Jared licked his lips and locked eyes with me “Alice is g
I sprinted down the hall and into my room. A bottle of vodka in my right hand and scissors in my left, reminded me of the one too many times I had cleaned up Coden’s wounds after he had been beaten up by his stepfather.Jared was heaving at the time I had gotten back, He was barely awake and seemed to be struggling with a few breaths, immediately I came into his line of sight he reached for me “Please just hang on.” I begged in a serious tone “Don’t die on me.” I mumbled when he locked eyes,He frowned and I watched his eyes glisten “Tha–that is too late now,” He admitted softly, I shook my head in frustration, He would not die on me.“No,” I protested “I need you alive Jared, please, this is not how it should have ended,” I said and bit on my bottom lip.Jared’s chest rose and he heaved, His body shook as he coughed out blood, I felt my heart drop. His eyes locked with mine and a tear rolled down my cheek “I didn’t want it to end like this.” He admitted softly. “It won’t end like thi
I shut my eyes and tears rolled down my cheeks, my insides twisted and my entire body shook as I slide to the ground. It had been approximately three hours since the paramedics had left. Since the detective and his friend walked through the doors.Now I was all alone. I was alone in my home and it had never felt this big, the thick scent of iron invaded my nose too many times to count, I curled into myself and rocked back and forth.I needed something to distract myself with. Something I could do — Something to take this pain away. But I knew grief better than any other man and it did not work that way. Grief and I were like friends because I was constantly losing things. Somedays people, Other days the will to live.That day, as I sat alone, resting on the wall, I realized that I had loved him. I loved Jared. I waiting for him for three long years. I waited for him to come back — With this sick mentality that once he was here everything would be alright. But of course, That wasn’t
“Wha—What do you mean?” I mumbled as I glanced between Tyler and Leonardo,The brown-haired boy scoffed and tossed the knife away. “She lost her memory, Happy now?” He shot at me and gestured with his hand. I stood up and sucked in a sharp breath, this could not be happening. Not now, not to me. For some reason, it felt like once a door opened up, something of someone shut it close every single time and it had become frustrating to play hide and seek with someone or something I have no clue about.“But how?” The words rolled out of my mouth. I found it hard to breathe or speak properly. Jared had just been murdered, and something worse was going to happen with Alice, Rye was out there planning who knows what and my only chance — the only lead I had to figure out the entire through had lost her memory.How convenient for everyone but me.“I don’t believe it,” I spoke sharply.“I don’t believe you either, but look, you are happening, carry out all this crap, live and in stereo.” Leonar
“Really?” I asked in one breath. Mrs. Amber nodded and sighed.“I’m so sorry I help on it for so long.” She apologized softly,“This—This is the best thing that could have ever happened to me.” I said as I traced my hands over the hardcover of the note “I mean it, thank you.”“I never thought you would be able to forgive me, Yet—““Thank you,” I said and a tear rolled down my cheeks. “Thank you so much, this— This means the world to me.”“Oh Danielle, I hope you find happiness and peace, soon. Very soon.” Mrs. Amber said in a sweet tone.“I hope so too.” I added, “Where are you going to stay? Do you have a place?” I asked as I glanced around to see if she came alone.“Well yes, Emily and I are staying at a hotel close by,” She admitted with a tight smile.“Oh no, I can’t allow that, you and Emily can come and stay at my place—”“Your Place?” I had half expected a response like that but I was not expecting the speaker to be well, the speaker.“You.” That was all I said when we locked e
“So, what are you going to do now?” Emily spoke when I had put my hand down. I rolled my eyes and ran my hands through my hair. I wanted to say something along the lines of I don’t know but then I realized that I do not owe her any explanations.I grabbed the bottle of Vodka that Tyler had left behind and chugged it down my throat. “Danielle!” Mrs. Amber Reprimanded as she grabbed it from my lips as tossed it aside. The sound of the bottle breaking pierced my ears but I stood straight. “I needed that whole,” I informed her with a straight face.“Oh grandma, I don’t think staying here is a good idea, she looks really troubled and all. Like she’s mentally unstable—”“You better shut up brat!” I roared. “I have had it with you! Ever since you got in my car all you have done is try to provoke me! Well here’s the gist, if you want to stay in my house and eat my food then you need to respect me or the door is right there, but Nana? She stays right here, I want to see who will stop me.” I b
I’m about to do something stupid. Something I would probably regret tomorrow but right now I was just absolutely exhausted and frustrated. I felt completely alone and I was dangerously close to believing that I was a burden or a problem. At this point, I was thinking straight, and as much as the logical part of my brain told me to go back to bed, the irrational one – which all always ends up following desperately tug at me to keep going. My feet dragged across the tiled floor, I had been walking for a few seconds but it felt like I had been on some never-ending journey where I was forced to walk on foot, I could hear silent whimpers leave my mouth and my eyelids could barely stay up. I wiped my tears with my hands and sucked in a deep breath with the consolation that I would soon be at my destination and It would be dawn soon. I hated nighttime. I hated when the moon came out and you could see the stars because over the years I had trained myself to hide from the horrific secrets an