Page 1 of Fallen Petal

Prologue

Malia

I miss her.

I see her every single day, but still, I miss my best friend like I’ve never missed her before.

When she left town to attend a school so far away that she might as well have vanished from the planet, we swore to each other that we wouldn’t let happen to us what has happened to so many others before.

We wouldn’t lose contact. We wouldn’t grow apart. We’d always stay friends, just as close as we’ve been most of our lives.

And we did. We managed to stay true to our words. Who in the world can say that about their childhood friend?

I envied her, though. I’ll admit that much. She achieved something that I never did, despite everything. She turned her back on something that was familiar and comfortable, but so overloaded with dark burdens that it would carve her to pieces if she stayed any longer. Others would not have had the courage she had.

I certainly didn’t.

But then again, I don’t share her pain. Not at all. We grew up together, so close, our lives so intertwined, yet so very, very different. I had a happy childhood, a loving home, a stability that was unknown to her. I wasn’t chased by the same demons she was, and I wasn’t as susceptible to the evil in this town.

She always had this allure on people. On men. I was jealous of it before I understood what it meant to be her, to attract their leering gazes and groping hands without even knowing why. It’s more than just her physical beauty, more than her enchanting eyes, more than her delicate frame, more than her soft curves and the wavy ash-blonde hair that makes her look like a doll.

It’s more than that.

It’s the mystery that surrounds her, and the danger that comes with it. She carries a secret, a secret she no longer knows about.

He took it from her, and in letting him do so, she made him the man he is today.

Jayson Bowlan, the famous mesmerist.

I was there when it happened. I was there for almost everything in her life. I know as much as there is to know about her, except for one thing: What exactly happened that night she lost the one person in her life who was supposed to protect her? No one knows—except for him.

Shrouded in mystery, he kept appearing and disappearing in her life. He was like a shadow, following her, watching her, protecting her in his own twisted way, even though her father tried to push him away again and again.

People are afraid of him, because of the things he’s capable of. But they also adore him. Boy, do they marvel at this man and his wondrous skill. They bend over backward to be seen by him, and they pay insane amounts to obtain his questionable services. He’s become so rich that it’s sickening.

I neither care for him, nor do I fear him.

But I love her. I will always love her.

I had to be a part of this. I had to be here for her, to make sure that he wouldn’t break her, as I’m sure he has done to others. He will not take my friend from me, not again.

My eyes are glued to her face as she watches the video on my phone, her eyes wide in shock while realization slowly hits her. I swore to myself I would only show it to her once, and not all of it. Just a few seconds, just enough for her to understand, to gain a pinch of knowledge that will make all of this a little easier on her.

I don’t understand everything about this. I don’t understand why things have to be this way, why he’s doing things the way he does, and why she’s subjected to this humiliating torment.

But I agreed to play my part in it. For her.

Because she asked me to.

She also asked me to do this, if I felt that it was necessary. So technically, I’m not breaking protocol. Not hers, at least.

He, on the other hand, can never know that I did this. He can’t know that I’ve learned the code he was so careful to hide from me. It took several times of spying across his shoulder as he quickly typed it in, because it’s a long code and I never manage to see and remember all of it at once. It took time, patience, and focus—but I had to do it. I had to find a way to be alone with her, without him knowing about it.

I didn’t know when the opportunity would present itself, if it ever would. But today, all the right pieces fell into place when Jayson had to leave the house.

We’re alone. Just the two of us, without being observed by his watchful eye.

But I don’t know for how long.

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