Chapter 1
Rina
I’ve never liked hospitals. They remind me of a time when a twenty-year-old and a twenty-two-year-old had to be strong after the loss of their parents, and subsequently transform into parental figures for their two younger siblings.
At the time, it was what I was supposed to do; what my older brother, Ledger, was supposed to do. Neither of us have regrets or any resentment, but it changed the course of both of our lives forever. Instead of experiencing college and then moving on to build his dream landscaping company, Ledger put everything on the back burner, slowly building his company here in Bluebell Falls. It wasn’t until very recently that his goals from back then became a reality, thanks to his fiancée, Ainsley.
As for me? I fell back into what I was good at—furniture building. I had greater aspirations once upon a time. I went to trade school to learn the ins and outs of carpentry and such, but I always thought I would do more with it. Sure, I’m pretty in demand lately with my custom furniture builds, but my life changed a lot within only a month’s time when my parents died.
Which brings me to why sitting here in the waiting area—waiting to hear any information about our youngest brother, Lennox, and watchingour sister, Willow, have a mental breakdown over her man—is literally killing me inside.
It doesn’t help thathe’shere.
Sheriff Arlo Steel.
The man who crushed my heart right after my parents died in a car crash.
The man who was supposed to stay away from Bluebell Falls, thanks to his military career.
The man who showed me love is a hoax and not something sacred, like I was led to believe.
It was a hard lesson to learn so young, but I’d like to think I’m all the better for it.
Except now, I see how good Ainsley is for Ledger. How Willow is so desperate to hear good news about her man, Oakley. It has my head wandering into dangerous territories.
And all the while, Arlo, with his stupid, dark brown crew cut, keeps pacing into my periphery. His deep brown eyes keep looking over at me, like he’s checking on me.
Well, fuck him. He lost that right long ago.
He doesn’t get to act like he gives a shit.
A doctor calling all of us to a room for updates interrupts my angry thoughts.
The update we receive is a good one, albeit still fucking miserable. Lennox was caught in the crosshairs of the Tennison Strangler. He was cut multiple times and had some extreme blood loss, but for the most part, he will physically recover just fine. Emotionally, as the doctor tells us, he’s in for an uphill battle. My heart hurts just hearing that. I know, logically, none of this is even remotely on me, but I can’t help but feellike I failed Lennox. I’m supposed to keep him safe, and yet he sits in a hospital bed in the ICU after a psychopath took his vendetta against Oakley out on him.
The doctor drones on, but I can barely focus. I catch a few words, like Oakley saying Willow is his fiancée so she can stay updated on his condition, and that Lennox will be here for at least a week.
The walls start to get this weird movement to them and close in on me. Squeezing my eyes closed, I focus on the knowledge that it’s just my mind playing tricks on me.
“Do you have any more questions for me?” the doctor asks.
I vigorously shake my head. The claustrophobic feeling is getting worse by the second, and I know I need to get out of this room and away from everyone. I need a place where I can freak out without an audience.
I hear the door shut and slowly open my eyes to see that it’s just Ledger, Ainsley, Willow and me left in the room. Everyone looks like they’re reeling from the news, but I can’t stick around to talk about it.
Slowly, I stand from my chair and walk to the door, shakily heading down the hallway to an area that looks deserted.
Lucking out, I find an empty room with a little table in it and plop down into the chair.
As I bury my head in my hands, the tears start to fall, and it only pisses me off more. I’m not a crier. I’m not one who falls apart. I made a vow a long time ago to always be strong and never let anyone see any weakness. But it sure as hell feels like I have weakness bleeding out of me right now.
And I hate every second of it.
I’ll allow myself this moment of fragility before I force myself to get my shit together.
My shoulders shake as the sobs come harder, and I’m barely able to catch my breath. I want to be mad at Oakley, at everyone involved in letting this happen to my baby brother. I want to be able to take Lennox’s pain away and have him live his normal life. To go back to being the happy-go-lucky pain in my ass, who names every animal he comes across as a park ranger. For him to bust a hole in Ledger’s drywall by throwing open the front door too hard. I don’t want him to have to live through this horror, through this trauma, that will probably fundamentally change him.
I’m still trying to catch my breath when I feel a hand on my shoulder.
