Page 89 of Shattered

When I reach across the table for the pill bottle, Macy grabs it.

“I’ve got it.”

“I got it,” I argue.

Her brows furrow. “Go out on the deck and drink your coffee. Take a breather; you look like you need one.”

When I open my mouth to argue, she raises a finger, silencing me.

“If she needs you, I know where to find you.”

Finally, I nod. But before she goes to Lila, I need help. “Macy?”

“Yeah?”

“Could you ask Turner to come by sometime? I want to talk to him. Apologize.”

She smiles slightly. “Yeah, I can ask. And Asher? You should find something to channel your anger into. It’ll help.”

“Thanks.” She’s probably right.

Macy was right. The fresh air does wonders as I sit on the deck drinking my coffee, watching the sky turn pink as the sun begins to rise. This town is so quiet and peaceful. Only the low sound of distant cars and the sound of birds chirping fill my ears.

For the first time since Lila was taken, I actually feel a little bit at peace. And that feeling is robbed when I remember that Bane’s dead. Jared’s dead. It brings me back to everything, watching Lila on my phone, how fucking scared I was when they dragged her out of the room to drown her.

I’ve never been a guy to feel my feelings. I’d bury them. But since Lila, I can’t do it. I’ve cried more in the last week than in my entire life. And I won’t fight it. I allow myself to feel it.

After I’ve calmed down some, I hear a vehicle pull into the driveway. A door opens and shuts, and a pair of heavy footsteps approach. Finally, Turner comes into view. His eyes are sunken, and he looks tired as shit.

“I hear you want to talk,” he says in that trademark rough voice,his eyes drifting down to my wheelchair with surprise.

Jesus, Macy’s fast. The sun isn’t even up yet. “I didn’t mean right this minute.”

He shrugs, stepping casually up the ramp. “I was already awake.” He sits down beside me in one of Sunshine’s lawn chairs with a to-go mug in his lap, staring over the trees where the sky is pink.

A surprisingly comfortable silence falls between us as we sip our coffee. But I have a piece to say, and I’m not gonna pussy out now.

“You have some really good friends, you know. I’ve never had anything like this. It was always just Bane and me.”

Turner nods. “And now he’s gone.”

I tear up again but just let them dribble down my cheeks.

“You got your leg fixed,” he says, sounding surprised.

“Yeah. I went to Dr. Ramos, and he helped me out. Same guy I pretty well spat on when I first got to town.”

Turner actually chuckles. “Ramos is a good guy. Great doctor; shitty bedside manner.”

Yeah, that’s him in a nutshell. “I wanted to thank you. You may have seriously kicked me when I was down, but it was the kick in the ass I needed.”

“Anytime. Happy to help.”

“There’s no bad blood over here. I know that everything you did, you did to protect Lila. And I know it was all my fault. This whole mess is the worst mistake I’ve ever made, and I will do whatever it takes to earn my place in her life.”

Turner nods, distant, as he considers. Finally, he speaks. “We all make mistakes.”

“How can I take care of her, mourn Bane and Jared, and deal with this fucked leg all at the sametime?”

---