Page 73 of Encounter

Gregory narrowed his crooked eyes at me. “Yeah...?”

How am I supposed to explain this without sounding completely out of my mind?“The kid we were hired to bring home, he— Fuck.” I sighed, resting my palm over half of my face. “Well… He contacted me later on, and I’ve been trainin’ with him.”

Staring at me, Mia sipped her drink slowly and glanced back at Gregory, who stood frozen in motion, ready to pour me the whiskey, mouth half open. “Trainingwith him? With a random normie brat? Why the hell would you?!”

“Gimme that damn drink,” I growled, getting impatient. Gregory hesitantly poured it into the glass and handed it to me. “He ain’t a brat, he—”

Shit... How do I explain this?

While I tried to bring myself to say it, Mia noticed the flabbergasted grimace on Gregory’s face and turned to me with a smile. “Doesn’t seem like somethin’ you would do.”

“Yeah, well,” I chuckled, kicking the contents of the glass back. “I’m aware.”

“You're chargin’ him though, right?”

With that question shrouded in judgment and alarm, Gregory made me want to order another drink right away. My heart pounded inside my chest, in an uncomfortably intense way—it wasn’t like being in combat, surrounded by danger and explosions, but almost as overwhelming. “No,” I finally replied, lowering my face toward the bar counter.

“The hell are you doing, Chast?” he blurted out—so loud, people turned to us.

Giving him a chastising frown, Mia sipped more of her cocktail and looked back at me. “You never seemed like the paternal type,” she noted with a provocative spark in her voice. Those foxy brown eyes studied me while I tried to avoid them like a coward.

Clenching my jaw, I snorted. “It’s not likethat. He ain’t a child.”

“Whatis it like, then?” Gregory kept pushing, and I was slowly getting annoyed by his exaggerated reaction. At the same time, I understood it and knew that if he told me the same thing, I would’ve thought he lost it, too. “I’m really tryin’ to understand here... Maybe there was some brain damage the doc didn’t see,” he added bitingly, making me groan as I lifted my head.

“He... I don’t fucking know why he calledme—why he thought it would be a good idea for me to train him instead of hiring a fuckin’ personal trainer,” I started rambling nervously. Tapping my fingers against the glass, I focused my eyes on a spot next to Gregory in an attempt to distract myself. “I would’ve laughed at him and hung up but—”

“...But?”

Hesitating, I opened my mouth and closed it again. Like the first time the date on Galen’s file caught my attention, a dose of adrenaline rushed through my body.

“I— I know you’re gonna think I’m insane, but... I came back from that job, I was about to shred his file and I noticed somethin’.” Without wanting to, my voice became low and shaky. I gazed into Gregory’s eyes, like a maniacal conspiracy theorist hoping to convince him my delusions were the truth.

I don’t even know if I can say it out loud.

Even though I knew that deep down, I was using it all as some fucked up source of comfort and didn’t fully, truly believe it, I felt like if I said it out loud, it would somehow completely break the illusion.

Why was I soscaredof losing whatever I had with Galen?Whatever it was...A mad, ridiculous, comforting coexistence that made no sense.

“He was born within half an hour of the crash,” I mouthed, unsure if Gregory understood me, or even if I spoke loud enough and not just in my head. “I know that logically, objectively? Means nothin’. Millions of people die and are born, but—”

Lydy’s eyes invaded my mind. With the exact same intensity as the flashbacks I used to get right after the crash, she stared at me, softening her gaze as the light in her eyes faded away.

After a moment of uncomfortable silence, Gregory let out a tired, painful sigh. “Chast...” he whispered, awkwardly glancing to the side and at Mia. “Please, don’t tell me you’re sayin’ you think... Fuck—whatare you thinking?” He tried to stay calm and collected but was clearly struggling. “Don’t say that you think the kid is Lydy or some shit like—”

“I know he ain’t!” I growled through my clenched teeth, tapping the glass enclosed in my tightening fist against the bar. I felt stupid. Stupid, ashamed, and guilty, for some reason... “I know he ain’t her, alright? I know, it’s just—”

“Youwanthim to be.” Mia said softly.

Gregory swiftly stepped forward, grabbing his side of the bar top. “Chast, I know how much you loved Lydy,” he blurted out, using that pitying tone of voice he knew would only make me angry. “I was there, remember? I fuckingknow. But this obsession really isn’t cute or healthy anymore, man.”

“Greg!” Mia scolded him.

He spread his arms. “What? I get it, I really fucking do! I’m not blamin’ you, but at some point, you really gotta let go. You can’t keep getting hung up on her. It’s been almost twenty damn years, and yougottamove on! I’ve told you this before, but this is a clear sign that—”

“A little late for that now, huh?” I snapped back at him, finally meeting his eyes. As the frustration bubbled inside my chest, I wasn’t even sure if I was angry at him or myself. In a way, he was right. I was weak and pathetic for not being able to move on. For never opening myself up to anyone else, for hanging onto Lydy’s memory for so long like a fucking desperate loser.

She wouldn’t have wanted that.

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