Page 83 of Sweet Nothings

I snap my head up and see Roe standing at the end of the hallway, leading to the other end of the house, away from the party.

“What are you doing here?” she asks breathily.

Between the stars in my eyes, I take in the way she looks. A black piece of silk is draped around her head elegantly, hiding her hairless scalp. Gaunt eyes and sunken cheeks. She’s vastly different even from the last time I saw her.

I’m still holding onto my cheek when I feel a sea of black moving in front of me.

I turn to look at Kellan. I think he’s going to still be standing in front of me, but instead, Lennon is between us.

With his hands clenched around Kellan’s lapel, he shoves him backward until his back lands against the sandstone wall.

“Lennon!” I yell, but my voice can’t be heard over the sound of their grunts of Kellan pushing against Lennon’s arm pinning him to the wall.

“Touch my wife again,” Lennon spits between clenched teeth. “I fucking dare you, asshole. Touch her again and you’re dead. I will slit your throat and bury you next to my father’s grave, I swear to God.”

“She was my sister before she was your wife,” Kellan spews back, lifting his chin. “Tell me, Lennon. How does it feel knowing the only reason your father made you marry her was because of me? Does it make your dick go limp every time you go to fuck her?”

“You fucking piece of shit.” Lennon keeps his left arm pressed against Kellan’s chest, and he lifts the other, quickly curling his hand into a fist. Without hesitation, and on a singlebreath, he rears his arm back and delivers a sharp, heavy blow to Kellan’s nose. A loud pop followed by the sound of cracking bones make my stomach lurch.

My hands fly to my mouth, muffling my scream. Blood streams from Kellan’s nose as he bends forward. Lennon lifts his hand again and punches him once more, not caring about the amount of blood he’s spilling. His back is to me, but with the way his shoulders have stiffened and the force behind his punches, I know there must be fire in his eyes.

“Stop.” I hear Roe’s meek voice. She steps out from the hallway, but steadies herself with her outstretched arm. There’s nothing for her to grab onto when she takes another faltering uneasy step.

With panicked, widespread eyes, she looks up at me. And I’m completely gutted.

“Laurel?” Her chin quivers as a tear spills from her half-open eyes. They roll back as she takes another step, her heel never lifting from the floor. I run toward her, but I don’t make it before her knees give out. She collapses, and though she tries to catch herself with her hands, the second she does, she immediately falls to her side and onto her back.

“Lennon!” I scream. “Help me!”

I fall to my knees and bend over Roe. Her eyes are shut, and I’m too panicked to see if she’s still breathing. My vision is blurry and my head pounds. Stars and dots of black fade in and out as I look down at Roe.

I yell over my shoulder again. “Lennon!”

Panicked, I wrap my hands around the back of her head and rest her in my lap. I gently place my bloodied hand on her cheek. “Roe,” I cry. “Please, Roe. Stay with me.”

“Here,” Lennon says, fear laced in his deep voice. I gently lift her head as Lennon’s hands slide beneath mine. I back away, crawling on the marble floor, giving Lennon space. When I’m agood distance away, I stay on my hands and knees, my shoulders racking with sobs.

“Monroe,” I beg, willing her to wake up.

Lennon bends over her, placing his fingers to her neck. Then he leans down, bringing his ear to her mouth. He looks up, seeing Ray standing in the doorway.

“Call an ambulance.”

Ray nods, scrambling as he pulls his phone from his pocket.

“She’s breathing,” Lennon tells me. His face is calm, but the panic in his eyes is evident, only solidified by the way his chest rapidly expands and contracts with every breath. “What happened?” he asks me, his eyebrows knitted tightly together.

I cover my mouth, muting my cries. My eyes dart back and forth between my sister and my husband.

Shaking, I lower my hand and finally tell Lennon the one secret remaining between us. The one he knew I was keeping. “She has cancer.”

TWENTY-SEVEN

Holding Roe’s lifeless body in my arms immediately thrusted me back to seeing my mother in the hospital.

The paramedics were on her in no time and airlifted her back to Boston, so she could be near her oncologist. Laurel rode in the helicopter with her. Once I ensured they were on their way, I had Olivia cancel the party and ask everyone to go home. I didn’t say goodbye to our guests, rushing to my own helicopter to catch up to Laurel and Roe at the hospital.

The rush of adrenaline hasn’t worn off, and I think a small part of me hasn’t allowed myself to address the trigger of what happened tonight. My focus is only on Laurel and Roe.

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