#Chapter 16: Shattered Hopes

Celeste

“Bye!” Fiona said, waving as she walked up the steps to her house. “See you tomorrow; and don’t forget to pack your gym clothes!”

“I won’t,” I replied with a smile. I watched my friend disappear inside her house, and then headed down the street toward my own house. It wasn’t a long walk—just a few blocks.

The rush of the day's accomplishments was still coursing through me when I pushed open the door to our shared home.

But that high vanished the moment my gaze landed on the scene before me.

“Jack!” I screamed, my voice echoing through the hallways. But I was met with only silence.

Laid out in front of me was a trail of cornflower blue fabric. Each piece had been shredded and painstaking laid out in an obvious path leading up the stairs.

Tears flowed freely as I slowly and shakily followed the path that had been left for me. With each step, my legs felt heavier, my soul felt more crushed.

The trail disappeared under my bedroom door. A sob caught in my throat, and my hand shook