Page 54 of Pretty Lies & Ugly Truths

My eyes roam her body, checking for the source of her distress, and in her fist I see a familiar black mask.

FUCK! How did she…?

A recent conversation with Jayce pops into my mind. I must have forgot to put it back up.

Unsure what is currently going on in her head, I try to think of with a way to fix this. I have no idea what all sheremembers from that night, but with the way she is reacting right now, it’s clear she remembers something.

“Please…just let me explain,” I beg, shutting the door.

She flinches when I flip the lock, her eyes zeroing in on mine, wild and full of fear. I take a tentative step towards her, and it feels like someone takes a knife to my chest when she jumps away from me, stumbling as the back of her legs hit the low table behind her.

I pause, my hands raised in front of me.

“Maggie, you know I’m not going to hurt you. I will never hurt you. Ever. You hear me? I just want a chance to explain. Talk to me. Please,” I say, voice low and calm as if I’m speaking to a frightened animal.

She doesn’t speak for a whole two minutes just stands there, clutching that mask in her tiny fists, fingers stroking over it absently.

“You were there. That night, that man… It was allreal?” Her hands come up to cover her mouth, the mask now forgotten as it falls to the floor at her feet.

She looks at me with such hurt and devastation in her eyes, it almost brings me to my knees “Oh God—h-he tried to….”

She cuts off on a sob, and my heart breaks to see her like this.

No longer able to hold myself back, I go to her, wrapping her up in my arms. I hold her tight as she sobs into my chest.

Eventually, she stiffens, her arms falling to hang loose by her sides.

“I killed someone,” she says numbly, her voice coming out as a whisper.

Next thing I know, she is shoving me away as she runs to the bathroom, barely reaching the toilet before she begins heaving violently. I follow behind her, kneeling on the cold floor as I gather the loose strands of her hair in my fist, holding it back away from her face.

“I’m so, so sorry, baby. I’d hoped you didn’t remember, that you’d never remember. Killing someone, even someone who deserves it… It changes you in ways you could never imagine. Trust me. I didn’t want that for you.”

She looks up at me, brows furrowed. “But…why would you even care? You didn’t know me.”

I shrug. “I didn’t have to. Just one look at you, and I could tell you were good. I knew it would hurt you to have to carry around that burden, that knowledge of what you did.”

“How? How do you know that?”

We both stand, and she takes several steps back, putting distance between us. It’s only a few feet, but with the way she’s looking at me right now, it may as well be miles.

Narrowing her eyes, her voice comes out cold and hard as she asks, “You said it yourself, that you’re not a good man, that you have done bad things. Right? So, tell me. How many people haveyoukilled Archer?”

My shoulders sag and my chest feels as if it’s been hollowed out, because I know it doesn’t matter what answer I give.

It’s too late.

I’ve already lost her.

20

Maggie

Fury burns hot in my veins, and I cling to it like a lifeline.

Being angry is better than being numb.

Better than the pain and devastation I felt moments ago.

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