Finally,fucking finally, her facade breaks down. She steps back into her house and I follow her in. She slams the door shut and turns to me, her finger pointing my direction. “You weren’t supposed to happen.”
“I’m not going to apologize for that. I didn’t expect someone to step in front of my truckwhile it was moving,but guess what? Someone did.”
“Stop. Just stop. Let it go.” Her hands move to her heart. “Letmego.”
“No, Brynn. You’re not deciding this for the both of us.”
“My mom emailed me this morning. They’re depositing money into my account next Friday. I can go away, Connor.” She looks sad, so sad. Her hand is at her heart, as if she’s holding it in. “You can move on. We always knew this was coming.”
I slam a fist into my open palm, the loud smacking sound bouncing through the tiny entryway. “Fight, Brynn. Fight for us. Fight againsthim. Don’t let him win.”
“This isn’t about only that.” Her voice wavers.
“You’re punishing yourself and you don’t need to. You. Weren’t. At. Fault.”
“I am at fault!” Brynn screams, tears pouring from her eyes.
“Brynn, no.”
“Yes, Connor. Yes. I saw her that day. Amy Prince. I was in a bookstore that morning, and she was there too. I didn’t speak to her, but I saw her. She was fearful and agitated. She needed help. Her baby cried, and she stared at it like it was this unbelievable thing. It cried and cried. She did nothing to help it.”
Brynn hands run through her hair, pulling it up in handfuls, then she drops it.
“I saw someone who needed help, and I didn’t give it.I walked away.” She wipes away tears with the back of her hand. “I got a cup of coffee and picked out two books, bought them, and left. She was standing on the sidewalk, and I had no idea she was going to step in front of my car, but the first time I saw her, I knew she needed help. If I made the right choice the first time, Amy Prince and her baby could still be alive.”
My heart twists. For Brynn’s pain, her guilt, and her shame. What happened was not her fault, and yet she can’t escape the feeling that it was. It’s utterly heartbreaking, but I see it now. I see her need to run. Eric Prince isn’t the only demon chasing her. Even worse, I don’t think I can help her.
“Come here.” I grab her shaking hands, but she stiffens, not allowing me to pull her in.
“Don’t make this harder than it has to be,” she whispers, looking down at the floor.
Tucking a finger under her chin, I nudge until she gives up and meets my eyes. “I wasn’t supposed to happen. I get it, but how the hell are we to know what’s supposed to happen? One second you were driving in your car, the next second two lives ceased to exist. I don’t know how it can be that one second can change the course of our lives, I only know that it can. Amy Prince stepped in front of your car and changed your life forever. You stepped in front of mine, and my heart will never be the same.”
“Connor, please, I’m doing this for you. For us.”
“Bullshit. You’re doing this because you’re scared. Under all the guilt and fear, you’re scared of me. Of what I represent. My heart makes your heart want to run and hide, and you’re listening to it.”
She stays silent, but her face is strained.
“You have nothing to say?” I’m so frustrated I could tear my hair out.
She shakes her head, her gaze going left, down to the ground.
A short, irritated breath surges from me. “Are you leaving next Friday?”
“Possibly.” Her voice is tiny.
“The art exhibit opens next Friday night. Will you stay long enough to come to that?”
“Yes.”
“Did you mean it? Are you quitting?”
She finally meets my eyes. “I have to, Connor. I just…have to.”
“No, you don’t. You could—”
Brynn moves for the door. “I think it’s time you go.”
