“He’s been this way for at least the last year. It started off with comments about my shorts, then my tank tops. Now I can’t even wear full lengths pants and a jacket without him getting hard.”
“Willow,” I said harshly.
“What?!” She shoved at my chest. “Youknowthat’s what the fuck it is. I look just like my mom before she got sick!”
I scrubbed a hand down my face. An icky, oily feeling inside me was making my stomach churn. I’d already known that was the problem, but it was something else entirely to hear it spelled out so clearly. And if Willow was already aware of the problem, that meant my father had probably said worse things to her than what I’d just witnessed.
“You should go,” Willow said quietly. “No one here wants to see you, Wy.”
My heart cracked.
It was no secret I didn’t know how to interact with my sister. It wasno secret that our relationship was strained, with most of the strain on my end. Now, I could clearly see how that strain had affected her. Maybe if I’d been more present, my father wouldn’t have progressed this badly. Maybe if I’d been here, I could have moved Lauren sooner, gotten her and Willow free from whatever hell existed in this house.
“Willow,” I started again, and she shook her head.
“I’ve never judged you, Wy.” She continued shaking her head as she spoke. “I know why you act the way you act. I understand why you hold back from me, from my mom. I get it. And you know what? I’ve never once been disappointed in you. I’ve never once been ashamed of you. I was proud of my last name. Not because of dad, but because ofyou.”
My eyes stung from sudden tears. Willow had never told me anything like this. I’d always assumed she maintained a relationship with me out of pity, not any type of actual sibling devotion.
But that was my fault, too. I would’ve known all of this if I’d spent any time with her.
“That changed today,” she said, her voice shaking.
My heart cracked further.
Willow took a deep breath. “You just stood there while dad suggested Skye be violated.” Mia sat up pin-straight, gaming console forgotten as she glared at me with enough heat to melt the Earth’s ice caps. “Forget her being your Key. Forget her being one of my best friends. She’s ahuman being, Wyatt. You claim to hate dad, and yet you just stood there and let him speak that way. What the fuck is actually wrong with you?”
“I don’t know,” I said lowly, not trusting my voice with more volume.
She was right. I did just stand there. Ialwaysjust stood there. How many times had I stood by and allowed him to insult Willow’s affinities? Or Lauren’s? How many times had I remained silent, only because I was glad it wasn’t me he was ragging on?
“No one cares that your mommy and daddy got divorced, Wyatt. They care that you’re a coward who’d rather roll over than stand up for something you believe in. If you weren’t my brother, I’d be glad Skye rejected you. If you weren’t my brother, I’d tell her toneverforgive you,because it’s not worth it. You, as the man you are now, wouldneverbe worth it.”
Willow stormed past me, only leaving flowery perfume in her wake. I turned, my vision blurring from tears, just in time to catch Mia glaring at me so hard, frost was beginning to cover the coffee table in front of her.
My feet echoed along the marble flooring as I saw myself out, Jeeves having disappeared in preparation for his punishment. My vision blurred every so often, but no tears actually fell. I pushed open the door, cringing at the freezing cold breeze that hit me.
As I made my way toward the iron gate that enclosed the property, I shivered. I was completely soaked through with rain, my socks even squishing in my boots. I’d forgotten my coat at the house, but I wouldn’t be going back for it.
No, the only time I would come back to this place was to take my sister and her mother with me. I turned and looked back at the looming silhouette with new resolve.
It was time for things to change.
I glanced down at my phone and sent a text to Rafe.
Me
Come get me
Chapter 27
Skye
“We don’t usually offerroom changes this late into the year,” Eleanor said with a pronounced frown. “It’s already second term.”
It had been over a week since the storm, and today Aiden and I had returned to the academy against Zephyr’s wishes and probably my better judgement.
I was now in the main office, trying to get us a new dorm room. I couldn’t continue sharing a room with Willow and sometimes Mia. After having Aiden to myself every hour of every day over our break, there was no way I could go back to how things were before.
