Page 62 of Capturing Hearts

“What’re you going to do now?” he asks, squinting up at the falling sun, his hazel eyes almost gold in this light.

I cut my glance to the water down below, thinking of the men who escaped Alcatraz so long ago. Here they put a prison in the Bay and didn’t expect people to try and swim?

“What choices do I have?

He doesn’t answer that. “You know I thought you’d–”

I stop him. “I know. I deserved a beating.”

He looks at me from under skeptical eyebrows. “You didn’t fight me.”

“Nope.”

He looks back to the water. “Tommy, you escaped prison to save her life.”

“I could have told someone it was going to happen, what my dad was going to do,” I mutter, not wanting to take credit anymore.

He makes a noise. “If you didn’t, you probably had a good reason. This was a dangerous move. Selfless.”

Taking a beat, I lick my lips, the metallic taste of blood oddly comforting. I’m about to say something, but decide I’ve got nothing worth saying.

“Mark?” We both turn around at Rebecca’s call. She’s standing by the cave’s entrance with a concerned look.

“Everything okay?” he asks, pulling his hands free from his pockets and stepping toward her.

Her hands fly up and she shakes her head. “Oh no! Everything’s fine. I just wanted to talk to Tommy for a second? If you don’t mind?”

He relaxes. “Sure.” He looks at me. Nods. I return it and watch him walk away. Rebecca walks forward wringing her hands. After realizing what she’s doing, she crosses them over her chest with a dignified raise of her neck, her light jacket crinkling.

“You should have brought a better coat,” I smile.

She chuckles. “You’re just wearing a t-shirt!” She bites her bottom lip. I stare at it, and force myself to look back to the water, away. “How did you get out?”

“Didn’t you hear? Seven fairies waved a magic wand.” I peek at her to see if that made her smile. It did.

“I don’t know what that means,” she quietly says, standing next to me, looking out at the water, too. The wind rises unexpectedly and picks up her hair a bit.

“If no one knows how, then everyone’s safe. You look beautiful,” I tell her.

She smiles and casts her eyes toward the dirt beneath her feet. “You look pretty great yourself.”

“You like the bruised look? Does that do it for ya?”

She laughs and shakes her head a little. “Oh man, Tommy. How have you been?”

“Awful. You?”

We stare at the water together. “I’m seeing someone.”

I focus on the bridge with no expression. I’m good at those. “I see. You like him?”

She breathes in between her teeth, almost whistling but not quite. “He’s a good man.”

“Hey Tommy?”

She and I look over to the cave.

Mark has his arm around his girlfriend’s waist, the tote bag they brought with them in his hands, zipped shut. “They want to talk to you. Just him,” Mark adds, looking at Rebecca. She shares a glance with me, her eyes feeling my anxiety for me. That’s sweet, because I’m not feeling anything. At least one of us should be.

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