“I’m…” I can’t get it out. I can’t fake it with her. Sobs make my body convulse with emotion, and I lean into her embrace, letting it bathe me in warmth.
“He said he’s been touching me in my sleep. Drugging me,” I admit to her.
“Oh my fucking God.” I watch genuine fear shoot through my best friend’s eyes for the first time in ten years.
“Did he touch you tonight?”
I bite my lower lip to stop it from trembling. Turning, I lift my nightgown. “Is it bad?”
“Greer!” she screeches, her cold hands dusting over the throbbing heat of my ass. “He did this to you? Why?”
“He said it was a punishment and a threat. He told me to call the police off, or you were next on his list.”
She eyes me as I turn back to face her. “I can’t let him have you. We’ve already been through so much and survived this long. And for what? I’ve been tormenting myself for years, and it’s all for no fucking reason!”
Allison’s brows knit. “What do you mean, for nothing?”
“He said that he’s the man from that night. He said he’s the one we hit.”
Allison’s face pales. It seems she was alright with what happened when the man was dead, but now that he’s alive, seeking retribution, she’s alarmed.
With good right, too.
He’s killed so many innocent people.
“He’s alive,” she whispers. “Holy shit.”
I nod. “I would celebrate or something, but my ass hurts.”
She fights a grin. “Come, let’s get something on it. I have some salves that should help calm your skin down.”
“I’m sorry I came here. I don’t want him to come after you, but I don’t have anyone else. I lost everything that night, even a part of me.”
“Hey!” she scolds, turning on me, her forest-green silk nightgown floating behind her like a specter. “Don’t you dare self-deprecate. You know that, whatever happens to you, happens to me. We’re a team.”
I fight another wave of tears as I give her another nod.
An hour later, my chapped ass is feeling slightly better, and I’m finally calming—under the firm hand of red wine and Xanax, but still.
I settle down into the duvet, the plushy bed welcoming me home.
“Are you sure you don’t want to sleep with me? You’re welcome to, you and Bear.”
It’s a nice offer, but I don’t want to have her hovering, nor do I want to invade her space more than I’m already doing.
“No. Thank you, though.”
A question is burning on the tip of my tongue, and I can’t keep it from spilling out as Allison turns and heads for the door.
“Ali,” I call out softly.
She spins on her heels, looking me over like a glass that’s hit the tile floor, inspecting me for cracks.
“Did you feel his pulse? Did you know he was alive?”
She swallows, and I wonder if it’s to hide something or to choke down emotion. “No. I didn’t. He didn’t have one. Maybe someone came along and helped him?” My eyes flick down to where she’s twirling her necklace.
It was a gift from me for her fifteenth birthday. I saved every penny for months before purchasing it.
