Page 84 of Hide Me Darling

Then there is silence. I can’t hear anything past the sound of my own heartbeat pounding in my ears. The world seems to dim for a moment, and then Chester's grip loosens, his body going limp and collapsing onto me. Abel instantly pulls him off and tosses him aside.

Abel pulls me up and into his arms, his hands running over me as though making sure I’m alright.

"I’m okay," I manage to say, my voice hoarse. Everything feels dull, as if my body is moving but I can’t feel it.

Cain steps forward, looking down at Chester's lifeless body. "He's done. It's over," he says, more to himself than anyone else. He then looks at both of us. “Take her back to the house, make sure she’s okay, I’ll deal with him.”

My legs feel like jelly, but the adrenaline is keeping me upright.

Abel instantly grips my hand and starts to move through the forest with me. I stumble twice before I pull him to a stop in frustration. The light of the moon is now shining brightly through a gap in the trees, making his mask dimmer. It’s as though the darkness has moved away from us now that Chester is dead. I stand for a moment, catching my breath and trying to steady my legs as my mind races with everything that happened today.

"What did he mean about us not getting away with killing him?" I ask finally. Abel looks back in the direction we came from, as though he can still see the body we left behind.

"Don't worry about that just yet," he says, moving to take my hand again. But I growl and hold mine up, making him stop.

"Then tell me how you found us so quickly. We are in the middle of a forest, there aren't any cameras here," I nearly shout, but my voice is strained and my neck sore. But when he glances back where we came from again, I realize I will get no answers without Cain present.

"Let's get you back to the house," he says after a moment.

"No! I'm tired of the lies and half-truths and manipulations. I want answers!" I shove my hands at his chest. Anger, hurt, frustration, and relief all try to course through me at once, but I don’t know what to focus on so I just keep pushing.

"Hydessa," he sighs, but I've had enough. I shove at him again, then again, and the next time I just yell.

"I want the truth!" I demand, trying to shove him back once more, but he gently grabs my hands.

"Little shadow, stop," he says more firmly, planting his feet in the ground and becoming immovable.

"NO! I'm done. I can't do this anymore. I can't let both of you keep doing this to me!" I yell. Tears fill my eyes as my words tumble from my mouth loud enough that I'm sure the whole island can hear me at this point.

"Dessa!" Abel yells, causing my blood to turn to ice. I freeze, barely able to breathe.

“Don’t call me that. Never call me that.” I’m no longer shouting, but my breaths are heaving as I try to find a sense of control. “Only one person was ever allowed to call me that,” I whisper. Abel brings my hands to his chest, and this time I don’t push.

"I know," he says softly in response. I can barely comprehend what's happening as he unzips his hoodie, revealing a heavily tattooed chest. He moves my hand, and I try to pull it away, but he holds firm, placing it against his skin. I feel it instantly—a raised scar in the jagged shape of a heart.

"You dug my heart's grave," he whispers. Tears trail down my cheeks as I look up into the neon green face of his mask and I realize who’s behind it.

“Link?”

Chapter 41

Link

17 Years Ago

Ican hear a faint beeping sound, like an alarm but softer. I struggle to wake up, but everything feels so heavy, my whole body feels like it's weighed down with sand. There’s something taped to my hand, but I can’t force my eyes open to look at it.

What happened to my cake? I was looking forward to my first birthday cake. Dessa convinced me that I needed to celebrate a ‘birthday’ each year. Weren’t we making a cake?

I can hear whispered voices close by, and it takes a moment to recognize Dessa’s mom and dad.

“I’m worried, Dare,” I hear her mom say.

“I thought we agreed not to hold the sins of his father against him?” comes a quiet male response. I don’t understand what they are talking about.

“That’s not what I’m talking about, I know he isn’t his dad, he is a sweet boy and I know he won’t make the same choices,” she responds, but her voice is getting softer. Maybe they are leaving, or I’m falling asleep again. I do feel very tired.

“Then what is it?” comes a faint question, but I don’t hear the answer, sleep is already dragging me down into darkness.

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