Page 56 of Claws and Feathers

And when he’d driven away, out of sight and into the night, Abby had collapsed onto the driveway, skinning her knees on the gravel. Her ankle had twisted on her stiletto. Her scraped palm had landed on a shard of glass. Abby had picked it up and run a finger along its jagged edges. It was so small, and yet, it could inflict so much damage. For a blinding moment, with alcohol still running through her veins, Abby had thought about slicing it against her wrists and bleeding out right there in her driveway. Bluebird Trail would become a crime scene. Abigail Stone would become a memory. And Crow’s Peak would have new ghosts. New stories to pass down to future generations.

The Man would finally have the satisfaction of her death.

Abby had shaken the dark thoughts away. She had eventually found the strength to stumble inside and fall asleep on the recliner – the only piece of furniture she’d had at the time.

But she thought about that moment a lot over the past week. Abby wondered if she’d made the right call. She wondered if anyone would miss her if she had died that night.

“You still with me?”

Abby shook her head, jolting in her seat. “W – What?”

“You spaced,” Kate said. “You look like you went to a dark place.”

You have no idea.Abby fumbled with her fork and dug back into the salad. “Sorry. Just drowning in self-loathing.”

Kate leaned forward and took a bite out of her cheeseburger. She wiped her face with a napkin as she collected her thoughts. “He still watches over you, you know.”

“Huh?” Abby jerked her head up, her fork falling onto the plate for a second time. “What do you mean?”

“My brother,” she clarified. “He parks across the street and keeps an eye on the house whenever he can. I’m sure he’s going to kill me for telling you that. So, I’ll see you in the next life.”

Abby was taken aback by the revelation. Cooper still watched out for her? Even after what she’d done? “Why?” It was the only question that seemed reasonable.

“Because he cares.”

Apparently, that was the onlyanswerthat seemed reasonable.

Abby sucked in a breath that tasted like ash. The remnants of her actions made her want to choke. “I really screwed up, Kate.” It was an understatement to say the least.

Kate set her burger down and sat forward on her elbows. “Look. I’m the last person to give any decent advice – I’m single, I’m broke, and I have no friends. But I do know Cooper better than anyone, so maybe that counts for something.” A smile crossed over her lips as she studied Abby. “You did screw up. He knows that, you know that, everyone knows that. Fine. Okay – you’re human. We all screw up. Obviously, Cooper screwed up somewhere along the way, too, or you wouldn’t have dry-humped Dormer.”

Abby cringed at the memory.

“Totally gross, but whatever,” Kate continued. “My point is, we all make mistakes. The defining moments are what we do next. How we recover.”

“What can I do?” Abby inquired. “Unless I can go back in time, I’m not seeing a lot of recovery options here.”

“Be open. Be vulnerable. Bereal,” Kate told her. “No excuses and no bullshit. My brother can spot bullshit from a mile away. He was married to Maya Lowry for fuck’s sake.”

Abby absorbed her words and allowed them to soak in. She fiddled with the tie on her summery romper, nibbling on her lower lip. “What if he won’t talk to me?”

Kate tilted her head, another smile touching her lips. “He will. Promise.”

Cooper sat in his patrol car that evening parked across the street from Abby’s house. Her home was shrouded in tall trees and a plethora of bushes, so he felt like he was out of sight. He had tried to stop by every day that week, if only for a few minutes. Cooper needed to be sure she was okay. He wanted to be certain there was no suspicious activity.

The Withered Man had a personal interest in Abby, whatever it may be, which meant he might come back. It meant that Abby’s life was in danger until he was captured. And if he did return, the odds were high that he would go through with what he had failed to accomplish the first time around. The thought plagued Cooper – his instincts were telling him,screamingat him, that this wasn’t over yet.

Abby may have smashed his heart to smithereens, but his loyalty to her safety was unbreakable. He would protect her until the case was closed – until The Withered Man was dead or behind bars.

After that… well, Cooper didn’t know.

He took a swig of his coffee, his eyes scanning her property for anything alarming. Her lawn had been tidied and de-weeded. Her grass was freshly cut, and her entryway was paved with mulch and green shrubs. Potted flowers hung from the top of her porch.

Abby’s living room light turned off from behind the curtains, and Cooper figured he should get back to the station to finish paperwork and call it a night. But before he started the engine back up, he saw her step outside onto the porch. Her white sundress billowed behind her as a breeze swept through, and she tucked her hair behind her ears. She was cradling a glass of wine in one hand as her cat trailed behind her, curling around her ankles. God, she was beautiful. She looked like a ghost, or an angel, or something from another world. Something ethereal.

Cooper’s heart swelled in his chest and he knew that he missed her. He didn’t want to. It would be a hell of a lot easier if he could just cut her out of him and move on from this chapter of his life. But Abigail Stone had latched on – she’d dug her way into the very marrow of his bones. She was a part of him now.

Abby looked up then. Her eyes drifted across her yard to the other side of the street, and it seemed as if she were staring right at him. She stepped forward, her dress floating behind her. She stopped when his patrol car could be seen through the trees, her gaze landing on him.

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