Page 92 of Haunted Prey

“She’ll freeze under there,” he snapped.

“Give her a moment,” Andrea answered.

Eventually, he asked her to leave, and she did. Alone together, we sat in silence for a long time.

I couldn’t stay like this forever. But facing him terrified me.

I heard leaves crunching as he shifted nearby. “Baby, I know you're scared. But you're honestly scaring me. Won’t you talk to me?”

I pressed my face into my knee, unable to find the words.

I heard his slow exhale. He was silent for a moment before speaking again.

“You know, you inspired me to be better when you came to St. Agnes. I didn’t just want you with me—I wanted tobeyou. You were everything. So sure of yourself, so bright, so beautiful. You were so fucking brave. I wanted to be just like you.

Before you came, I’d thought more than once about ending it all. But you convinced me, every single day, to keep going. That was all you, Eve.”

I clenched my fist.

“You are the strongest, bravest person I know,” he continued. “You are the best person I know. And…if I could take back what happened, I would if it meant this never happened, that I never scared you like this. Never hurt you like this.”

I blinked and tears fell.

“I’m sorry, Eve.”

A sob caught in my throat. And I realized it didn’t matter anymore what I thought or felt.

He had the right to know.

I took a deep breath and unfurled myself from the tree. My limbs were stiff, but I forced myself to move onto my knees. Carefully, I crawled my way out of the opening and saw him sitting beside it.

I still found it hard to look at him, but I allowed him to help me to my feet.

I stood there for a moment and took a deep breath. “Can we walk for a minute?”

“Of course.”

I turned down one of the paths, gathering the words in my head, how I was going to tell him. He didn’t speak, not yet. He walked by my side as we veered around a row of bushes.

Ahead, I saw a large oak, its branches bare and in front of it was a statue of an angel, its face crumbled on one side.

I stopped in front of the grave and realized it was two—a man and a woman. Husband and wife, buried together in a site that had grown wild over time. I imagined wildflowers blooming around them in the spring, reclaiming the space with beauty.

I turned toward Emery, who had paused a few feet away. Forcing myself to meet his gaze, I saw the grim set of his expression, tempered with concern.

“Is it about the test?” he asked gently. “Because whatever it is, I swear I’ll be right beside you, no matter what you choose.”

He took a step toward me, and I put my hand out to stop him. “I have to tell you something, Emery. I should have told you sooner, but I was scared.”

His brows furrowed. “Baby, you can tell me anything.”

I shook my head, chewing on my bottom lip to stop it from trembling. “Remember how you reacted when you found out who I was? And you thought I had been poisoning you with the medicine?”

He stilled, his expression darkening. “Yes. I remember.”

“And how you reacted when you saw I had this?” I touched my charm necklace which had once been his sister’s.

He clenched and unclenched his hands. “Yes.”

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