Page 42 of Shattered Veil

Maybe it was because his hair had grown out, and he had a hint of stubble that was absent the last time I had seen him.

Maybe it was because it had been almost a year since I had been graced with his presence.

Or maybe…maybe I had tried to stuff everything that had occurred back then as far into the back of my brain as I possibly could. So far that I was initially dumbstruck as to why my brother was storming toward this man with an obvious, harmful intent.

It was only when the man hissed out, “Shit,” as Luke made his way that I was able to connect the dots because he was so shocked that I could see the color of his eyes. It was remarkable that I was able to do so from this distance, but that could have been because they were unsettlingly familiar. The icy blue was so light in color that I distinguished it from where I sat, and the realization felt like a sledgehammer to the chest.

Cassie was barely able to voice, “Um…” before Zoey screeched:

“What the fuck?!”

I shot out of my chair, and Liam cursed as he did the same—I was certain that it was both of our intentions to stop Luke in his tracks.

We didn’t.

Our respective hesitation while we both came to regarding the identity of the man before us, as short as it was, was too long. Instead, Liam clambered behind me, I took two running steps in their direction, and Luke’s fist managed to hit the left side of Colton Langdon’s face with a loud, skin-on-skin smack that resonated throughout the bar.

Chapter 9

“Deep breath, brother.” I attempted to hold Luke back with my arms around his stomach, yanking him backward as he grunted and fought my hold on him from behind. “Goddamn—Luke!” He jerked forward in an attempt to break my grasp, and despite our difference in size, he was nearly able to break free. I called behind me, “Liam!”

“Yeah, yup, I’m here,” he rattled off, jogging to take my place. I stepped back as he grabbed Luke from me quickly, bear hugging him with his brawny arms around his shoulders and his hands clasping over his chest. He spoke to Luke calmly, “He’s on the ground, bud. What are you gonna do?”

I glanced at Colton—Liam was right. Knocked on his ass, Colton was gingerly touching his face and wincing, and he didn’t appear to be going anywhere.

“Ya didn’t even give me a chance to say anything,” he grumbled, blinking hard as if he were warding away stars. “I’m not here for Claire. I’m not fuckin’ nuts.” His eyes flickered behind me to the table we were all once sitting at, and he offered everyone a weak wave. “Uh, hi, Claire.”

I looked to find both Zoey and Cassie standing out of their seats with wide eyes—Zoey assessing Colton’s sincerity with a clenched jaw and Cassie’s expression one of bewilderment. Remaining seated, Claire tore her eyes from Liam, who was still containing a now stationary Luke, eyed Colton, and replied with a large exhale:

“Hi.”

There was nothing but heavy breathing from the direction of Luke and Liam and a quietly whispered, “Ow,” from Colton as he traced along his cheekbone with his fingertips, until Cassie spoke:

“Who…who the fuck is this?”

The question could have been assumed to be directed at me because she was staring my way with an inquisitive, dark gaze as she said it. It wasn’t, though…it was for the entire group because it was clear that everyone aside from Cassie was either alarmed or enraged—or both—at the mere sight of Colton. Despite that, I still debated how to respond for there was much that Cassie simply…didn’t know.

She didn’t know that when Claire had moved to Salem, it was as a means of escape from her criminal past. She didn’t know that said criminal history was interwoven with her ex-boyfriend, Colton. And she definitely didn’t know that he had inevitably blackmailed her into returning to her hometown. It was nearly one year ago that Claire had left Luke behind to sort out her old life, all of our newfound group came to her aid, and, in the end, several of us were far from worse for wear. Claire had been drugged, held for ransom, and a knife was lodged deep into one of her thighs. Liam’s clavicle was shattered after a bullet went clean through him—the details of which he had, no doubt, kept from his sister. Luke was grazed in the gunfire along his ribcage. The man who was responsible for the injuries was gunned down by the police. Colton, however…was off scot-free.

It was all history that I didn’t care to revisit, for we had healed since then. Well, we had healed enough to deal with the next traumatic event—the one that had rocked us all to our very core and seemed to be currently resurfacing. But we had healed, nonetheless…and, no, we didn’t tend to speak about it. That was Claire’s story to tell if she were so inclined to do so, and Claire was not one to speak about her past, so it remained behind us—assumed to be dead and buried. Colton was assumed to be metaphorically dead and buried to us. Yet, here he sat, quietly speaking to Cassie from the floor with a gritty:

“Ah—red’s ex.” Cassie glanced quickly to Claire and then back to Colton, and he introduced himself, “Colton Langdon.” Colton looked at her curiously, as if he were trying to place her. “Who are you?”

The way he asked the question wasn’t malicious in the least, but for some reason, it still made my chest sink.

Liam thumped Luke on his chest twice and asked, “You good?”

Luke nodded, the murderous glare still in his eyes, yet he remained in place, and Liam hesitantly released him.

Liam then snapped at Colton, “Don’t talk to my sister. Fuckin’ leave.”

“Liam,” Cassie argued, looking to her brother incredulously.

He pointed at her and chastised, “Don’t.”

“Fuck off!” she retorted. “I can take care of myself!”

Liam groaned to the ceiling, “You think I don’t know that? I just mean—”

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