Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 103104 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 103104 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 516(@200wpm)___ 412(@250wpm)___ 344(@300wpm)
Chance blows out a breath and looks away from me.
Liam frowns. “You two having a little tiff? Things not well on the offense, Knox?” He smirks. “Let me guess—Ava. Jesus, I’m sick of her.”
“Shut up, Liam,” Chance snaps. “Just stay out of it.”
I realize my twin isn’t with Liam. “Where’s Dane?”
He shrugs. “Went to pick him up, blew the horn and texted him. I got nada. Guess he’s not coming. He was wasted last night when I dropped him off.”
“Yeah? Where were you guys?” I ask.
Liam curls his lip. “Had a little get-together in my barn, some girls from Hampton High dropped by, sweet as hell—”
Jolena approaches and he shuts up, giving us a sweeping look. No blabbing, his gaze says. Whatever.
“When you went to pick him up this morning, was my dad’s car there? White BMW? He usually parks under the portico outside the front door.” He was supposed to leave for New York today for a meeting, but he hadn’t left by the time I did.
“No.”
“Suzy’s black Camry?”
He gives me an annoyed glance. “Didn’t see it, but I’m not his babysitter. He’s probably just skipping.”
My throat dries. When I left, Suzy was taking care of Astley and making an appointment for her to go to the vet. Had she left already?
“I even got out and knocked on the door,” Liam continues. “He’s sleeping in and will show up.”
My lips tighten. He doesn’t have a car! I guess Suzy could bring him later, but…
Ignoring them, I open the Finders App on my phone, and sure enough, Dane is home. I think about him shuddering when he crawled in my bed last night—
Jolena lets out a startled gasp as she looks at her phone. She shoves it in my face. “Did you go to prank night with Ava?”
I look at the picture of me holding the cat. Ava is next to me, a little smile on her face. Damn, she’s beautiful.
Liam leans in and then looks at me, eyes gleaming. “Ah, didn’t see that one. You hitting that finally?” He smirks at Chance. “Sorry, man. What Knox wants, Knox eventually gets.”
Jolena shakes her head, her eyes hard. “What is going on? How did I miss this?”
“Catch up, Jo. He’s with her,” Chance says, his face tight. “I’m going to class.”
He stalks off, heading to History of Film, where I should be going.
“Let’s get out of here,” Liam says to Jolena, throwing his arm around her as they leave.
I think for half a second, debating going to class and seeing Ava or checking on my brother.
I whip around, head for the exit, and run for my car.
“Dane!” I call out as I walk into the kitchen, but no one’s there.
I check the den. The TV is on ESPN, but no Dane.
I jog out the French doors to the pool, my heart pounding. I’ve caught him out here before, a flat look on his face behind his sunglasses as he sat in a lounge chair. The place is eerily quiet except for the line of waterfalls along the pool wall that cascade down. Running, I scan the perimeter, the pool house, the cabana, the outdoor kitchen.
Twisting around, I dash back inside. “Dane!” I bellow.
Nothing.
I take the kitchen staircase three at a time and run to my room. He’s not there.
I step back into the hall and head to his bedroom. The door is shut and I swallow, closing my eyes, visions of Mom face down in our pool pulsing in my head.
“Dane?”
His bed is empty and his room is a total wreck, clothes on the floor, fast food drinks on the nightstand, his prescription bottles strewn about.
The sound of the shower comes from his bathroom and I call out his name before I step inside. The white, wall-to-wall marble-tiled bathroom is almost as big as his bedroom. Steam rises, clouding the mirrors.
My heart lurches when I see him huddled nude on the floor of the walk-in shower.
His knees are pulled up to his chest, water falling over him. I fling the door open and relief makes me weak. Panting, I crouch to the floor at the edge of the shower, water droplets hitting my face and clothes.
“Dane? Hey, man, I’m here,” I whisper as I reach over and turn off the water.
He doesn’t reply, just rocks back and forth.
Fear and dread snake over me as I glance around the room, my gaze landing and freezing on a package of razor blades on the sink. Adrenaline seizes me and my eyes dart back to him, but I don’t see any cuts or blood.
“Dane? Come on, man. It’s me.”
He moans, his head still lowered.
Shit, shit, shit. I rub my face. I can’t make him do the right things, and emotion, dark and thick, slides over me.
I don’t know how to fix him.
I wish I were better at this, but I’m just…