Page 69 of (Un)Spoken

Even though the police were hesitant to say the word stalker, I knew Adam and I were thinking the same thing—it was the same person who had been tormenting him in the city. Our conversation about his stalker from weeks ago came rushing back to me, and I could remember the fear in his eyes. He’d fought like hell to get away from them, and was just starting to regain his confidence in the world. For so long, his stalker hadn’t made any moves against him, so we assumed they were gone for good. But now, it appeared they were just biding their time. The pictures proved they’d been following him,us, all this time, lying in wait for the moment to attack.

“Miss?” the officer asked from the seat across from me.

I shook my head to clear my mind. “Sorry, I’m having trouble focusing.”

“I understand,” he answered solemnly. “About the festival—was there anyone who stuck out to you? Who seemed out of place?”

“No,” I sighed. “We met a lot of people today. I didn’tget a weird feeling or anything from anyone, but I also wasn’t really looking that closely.”

The officer noted something in his notebook as the front door burst open, my brother appearing on the other side. He scanned the area, and his relief was evident when he met my eyes. Without a word, he crossed the room and pulled me into his arms. He leaned back, scanning my face. “Are you okay? What happened?”

I shook my head. “I’m fine, just a little rattled. Emilia?”

“She’s good,” he breathed. “Cam brought her and Hadley over to my house. When I left, she was sleeping soundly in the guest room.”

“Good,” I sighed, pressing my hand to my chest. It was a slight relief to know she was in good hands and away from all this chaos. As Cole watched me, I took a step back, wrapping my arms around my middle. “You should go check on Adam. He’s barely hanging on. I’m afraid he’s going to snap pretty soon.”

Cole nodded, watching his friend through the pane of glass. “Did you know this was happening?”

“I knew that something happened in the past, but he was hopeful it was over.” I smiled softly up at him. “Sorry, I can’t say anything more than that. It’s not my story to tell.”

Cole stared at me, worry and fear etching his brow. “Look, I know you two are together, but maybe you should think about getting out of town until all this clears up. I don’t want you or Emilia in any danger.”

“No,” I insisted, steeling my shoulders to face him. “I’m not leaving Adam, not when someone is threatening him because of me.”

“That’s precisely why youshouldgo,” Cole insisted, rubbing his brow. “Clearly, this fucking psycho is pissed you’re dating Adam. This time, they came after him, butwhat are you going to do if they start to target you? What if something happens to Emilia?”

“I…I–” My voice stuttered, unsure how to even answer his questions. It felt like my heart was being torn in two. My primary duty was to my daughter, to make sure she was safe no matter what. And even though I knew leaving was the best option, my entire heart rebelled at the thought of leaving Adam. There was no way I could walk away, not when he needed me most. “Cole, I can’t–”

“He’s right.”

My head whipped to Adam, finding him now standing in the doorway. His eyes were rimmed red, and raw anger radiated off his body. I stepped closer to him, needing to soothe some of his pain, but he held his hand out, stopping me from coming any closer. “You need to go home, Tori. You shouldn’t be here.”

I swallowed, bowing my head. “That’s fine. I can head up to my apartment. Call me when you need to crash, and you can stay with me.”

As I turned, Adam’s voice called out, “No.” I turned, meeting his stern expression. He continued, “I meant you should take Emilia and go back to Texas.”

“What?” I snapped. “How can you even say that?”

Adam stared at me, his gaze set and determined, without saying a word. The rest of the room faded away as we faced off, our anxieties and fears blending into desperation. Before either of us could speak, one of the police officers came to Cole’s side. “Sir, are you the owner of this establishment?”

“Not now,” Cole snapped.

“We just have to ask a couple of questions about your security system.” The cop swallowed, his nerves evident by the wobble in his throat. “Could you please come with us?”

“Fine,” my brother grunted out. He pointed at Adam. “Make sure she’s safe.”

Adam nodded, but his eyes never left mine. This was the first time I hated being able to read him so well. I could see it all: his fear, his nausea, how much he wanted to protect me. But none of it was enough to send me away, not when my heart broke staring at this defeated version of the man I loved.

Between the weight of Adam’s stare and the hundreds of images of us watching our every move, I couldn’t stay inside the cabin for a moment longer. I pushed past Adam, heading to the balcony. I gripped the railing in my hands as I slowly inhaled, staring out at the lake like I often did, begging it for one more moment of peaceful tranquility. But it didn’t come. Not when my world felt like it was spiraling out around me.

I could feel Adam join me before I even turned around. As I shifted to face him, all my words died on my tongue. The look on his face silenced me. His nose flared, and his lips were flat, as if his whole body was tense beyond measure. I’d never seen this side of him, and if it was anyone else, I would have been terrified. But I knew Adam, knew the depth of his heart. He wasn’t trying to scare me—he was afraidforme.

“I know what you’re going to say,” Adam said, his voice gruff and unnerved. “But you need to go home, Tori.”

“I’m not leaving you right now,” I insisted. “Not when all of this is happening.”

“It’s my fault,” Adam dryly chuckled. “It’s my fucking fault that this is happening, Tori. I should have known. I thought that maybe, just maybe, I could get my life back, but I should have known that was too much to ask. My therapist tried to warn me, but I refused to listen. And now lookwhat happened.” He threw his arm out toward his bedroom. “So you need to leave. Get as much space from me as humanly possible.”

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