Kolya’s arms tighten around me. “Fools.”
He has no idea how right he is.
“Less than a year later, they divorced. And then they fought over custody. Not because they both wanted me, but because neither of them did.”
“I bet you just felt that way. That’s a common reaction in kids when their parents fight.”
I shake my head. “I don’t think so. I could feel that I was a burden to them. And I tried so hard to be happy. To be good. I thought if I was cheerful enough, helpful enough, perfect enough, they’d stop the divorce and stay together.”
The costly admission drains something vital from my chest. But there’s relief, too, in finally exposing this old wound and hopefully allowing myself to heal.
His lips graze my temple, but I barely notice.
“It didn’t work. Nothing worked. Eventually, my mom got primary custody, and my dad moved across the country. Hesends the occasional birthday card. Mom remarried when I was sixteen and moved to Arizona with her new husband. I lived with them for a couple of years until I started college. At first, I didn’t understand my parents at all. Giving up on the people you love when life gets hard.”
“Weakness isn’t inherited, Chloe. It’s a choice.”
“Well, I choose to be strong and stand by the people I care about no matter what life throws my way.”
Kolya’s hand cradles my cheek and tilts my face up to meet his gaze. His eyes burn with a fierce protectiveness. “You deserved better.”
“The point is, that night changed everything. Not just for your people. For me too. But I never saw any diamonds. Any gems at all. I didn’t take anything. I wasn’t given anything. It was just me in my dress, covered in blood. They cut it off me at the hospital, so I didn’t even keep that.”
“I believe you. But for some reason, MJ connected the diamonds to you. Maybe because you were a witness. Or perhaps someone else used your name, your identity.”
“Stole a nine-year-old’s identity? To do what?”
He shrugs, his hand returning to my head and stroking gently. “What you’ve told me… It’s the first real account I’ve heard of what happened. Roman doesn’t talk about it. No one does. It’s just ‘the chaos on the island.’ A ghost story from our past.”
I nestle closer to him, suddenly cold despite his warmth. “And now the ghost is haunting us.”
“Yes. But, together, we can discover why.”
Together. The word settles inside me, sealing the hollow spaces. For so long, I’ve been alone with these memories, alone with my fear. Surrounded by friends, colleagues, and students, but still fundamentally isolated by the wall of my trauma.
Not anymore.
Not with Kolya.
Monster. Protector.
Mine.
Chapter 29
Chloe
“…and the police have been by asking about you. I didn’t know what to tell them. Are you really okay?” Bree is nearly crying from all the anxiety.
I sigh, rubbing my forehead. “I promise I’m fine. There’s just…a lot happening right now. I’m sorry to worry you.”
Keys jangle through the phone line as she climbs out of her car. “I’m just glad to hear from you. I’ve got to get inside and clock in, but promise me you’ll call later.”
“I promise. Thanks, Bree.”
I hang up and quietly set Kolya’s burner phone on the kitchen counter.
My brain, spinning with everything Kolya and I shared, won’t quiet.
