Page 23 of Dear Owen

His words cut deep, but they only stoked the fire. “You don’t know anything about us,” I snapped, stepping closer again. “You don’t know what she needs.”

“You're right. I don't know what she needs,” Liam retorted, his voice cold. “But I do know she didn't need whatever twisted fucking version of love you think you’ve been giving her.”

I took another step toward him, the distance between us vanishing as I stared him down. “You think you’re some kind of hero?” I growled. “That breaking intomyspace and taking her fixes everything?”

“No.” His tone softened, but his words hit even harder. “I know it doesn’t fix anything. I know I can’t undo the damage. But I’ll do everything I can to keep her safe from you.”

My breath hitched, the weight of his words settling heavily in my chest. “She’s mine,” I said, quieter now, the desperation bleeding into my voice. “She needs me.”

Liam’s jaw tightened, his expression hardening. “She needed you to let her go,” he said. “And you couldn’t do it. You locked her away because you couldn’t stand the thought of her being someone outside of you. That’s not love, Owen. That’s possession.”

The truth in his words hit like a punch to the gut, but I refused to acknowledge it. “You think you’re better than me?” I spat, my voice trembling with anger. “You think you’ve saved her?”

Liam shook his head, a bitter laugh escaping his lips. “I’m not better than you,” he said quietly. “I let this go on too long. But I’m done standing by. You don’t get to ruin her any more than you already have.”

Silence fell between us, thick and suffocating. The echoes of everything we’d done—and failed to do—hung in the air like a noose. Finally, Liam stepped around me, his shoulder brushing mine as he walked away.

“Keep looking if you want,” he said without turning back. “But you’re not going to find her. Not until she’s ready to be found.Ifshe ever wants to be found.”

I stood there, frozen, as his words sank in. My chest heaved, my hands shaking at my sides. The leather bracelet was gone, tucked away in his pocket, but its presence still weighed on me.

Liam was right about one thing: I’d hurt her. But he was wrong if he thought I was giving up.

Not yet. Not ever.

Twenty-One

Liam’s wordshaunted me as I walked across campus, fists clenched so tightly my nails bit into my palms.You don’t get to ruin her anymore.

I’d heard the defiance in his voice, the finality, but I refused to let it end there. He thought he could take her away from me, hide her like she wasn’t mine—like she didn’t belong to me.

My steps quickened until I was practically running, my mind spinning with possibilities. If Liam wasn’t going to give her back, I’d find her myself. She couldn’t have gone far. She didn’t have the resources, the means to just disappear.

I reached her dorm and shoved the door open, slamming it shut behind me. Her scent hit me immediately, faint but unmistakable. It was like a drug, flooding my system and making my heart race. I tore through the room, my hands shaking as I yanked open drawers and rifled through her belongings. Her clothes, her notebooks, the little trinkets she’d collected—each piece felt like a fragment of her, something tangible to cling to.

I picked up one of her sweaters, pressing it to my face and inhaling deeply. It was pathetic, I knew that, but I didn’t care. She was slipping away from me, and I couldn’t let that happen.

Her desk was the next target. I ripped open the drawers, scattering pens and papers across the floor. A notebook caught my eye, its worn cover familiar. I flipped it open, scanning the pages for anything that might tell me where she’d gone. But it was just notes, neat handwriting detailing lectures and assignments. Nothing personal. Nothing useful.

My frustration boiled over, and I slammed the notebook onto the desk. I leaned forward, gripping the edge tightly, my breath ragged. “Where are you?” I whispered, the words barely audible over the pounding in my head.

When her dorm yielded nothing, I didn’t hesitate. I drove to her parents’ house, piecing together the location from vague details she’d mentioned in passing. The drive stretched on endlessly, every mile feeding the simmering panic in my chest. I gripped the steering wheel so tightly my knuckles ached, my mind racing with worst-case scenarios.

Her mother answered the door, her warm expression shifting to confusion the moment she saw me.

“Hi, can I help you?” she asked, her voice cautious but polite.

I forced a smile, though it felt foreign on my face. “I’m Owen. I’m, uh, a friend of Kira’s. I was just wondering if she’s here.”

Her mother’s brows furrowed. “Kira? No, she’s not here. Why would she be? Is everything okay?”

I swallowed hard, the weight of her suspicion pressing on my chest. “Yeah, everything’s fine. I just… I haven’t seen her in a couple of days. I thought she might’ve come home.”

Her mother shook her head, a flicker of concern crossing her face. “No, she hasn’t been here. We haven’t heard from her. Are you sure she’s okay?”

The panic that had been simmering threatened to boil over. I nodded quickly, stepping back. “Yeah, she’s fine. I’m sorry to bother you. Thanks.”

Her mother watched me closely, her unease palpable. “If you hear from her, can you tell her to call us? We’ve been worried about her.”

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