“No.”
His face fell.“Tess… you don’t even want to see...”
“No,” I repeated, sharper.“Take it away.”
He swallowed hard and nodded.
He didn’t deserve that.
None of them did.
But I couldn’t stop.
My anger had nowhere to go but outward.
People kept showing up, trying.The look on their faces made me feel guilty, and that guilt flared irrationally into anger.
Maggie knocked on the door, voice trembling.“Sweetheart?Can we come in?We just want...”
“No.”
The word tore out of me before I could soften it.I pressed my forehead against the wall, shaking.
“I can’t,” I whispered.“Please.I can’t.”
There was a heartbeat of silence.
Then Maggie whispered, voice breaking, “Okay, Tessa.We’ll try again later.”
The guilt clawed at me.But I still couldn't open the door.
Anger was the only thing keeping the grief from swallowing me whole.
The only person I didn’t shut out was Kenzie.
Maybe because she didn’t try to fix me.
Maybe because her fury matched mine.
Maybe because she was the only one who didn’t look at me like I was fragile or fallen apart.
One night, she slid her laptop onto my lap.
“I have afriend,” she said quietly.“A lawyer.He specializes in contract law, but has a soft spot for human rights.I think he can help you.Or help… whatever this is becoming.”
I stared at her.
“What is this becoming?”My voice was flat.Hollow.
“Something,” she whispered.“You’re not done.You’re not broken.You’re angry because something horrible happened, and you still have fight in you.”
“I don’t know how to fight this.”
“So let someone help you.”
I didn’t agree.
I didn’t disagree.
