Page 56 of Pretty Lies & Ugly Truths

“You drugged me…injected me with something,” I say, suddenly remembering. “That’s why you thought I might have forgotten. Why my memories are so foggy.” He nods once, and nausea churns my stomach as I remember how scared and confused I felt waking up that next morning, not sure what to believe, unable to trust my own mind.

“What the hell, Archer?” I yell, and he has the good sense to look ashamed.

“Did you know that for weeks, I thought I was going crazy? I was having terrible nightmares. I was paranoid and anxious. I felt like I was losing my damn mind.” My hands shake as I start to pace, the room suddenly feeling too small.

I stop abruptly, a thought popping into my head.

“You took me home, didn’t you?” When he doesn’t deny it, I continue, “You washed me. Changed me. You saw me naked. Archer…don’t you see how fucked up that is? That is such a violation. Was there anyone else… Did anyone else see me?”

“No. Only me.”

I nod. Good. That’s good. I would die if I knew there were others who saw me like that, but still…

“I was only trying to protect you.”

“I don’t carewhyyou did it. You had no right!” I shout.

Suddenly overcome with the need to escape, I march towards the door.

“Where are you going?” he asks frantically, following behind me.

“I need to leave. I just—I can’t be here right now. I need space to think.Alone.”

“Let me drive you,” he offers, and I scoff, shaking my head.

“What part of alone do you not understand?” I snap.

There is no way I can get into a car with this man right now. I am too angry, too emotional. I have too many thoughts racing through my head that I need to process by myself, without his cloying presence clouding my judgment.

“Please,” he pleads, his fingers raking through his hair and tugging at the roots.

“No.” I turn to open the door, but he latches onto my wrist with a firm grip.

“If you won’t let me take you, then please, let me get Jayce. We don’t know if someone’s still out there, and I couldn’t live with myself if something…” His voice breaks off, and he clears his throat. “Please.”

I open my mouth to refuse, but he’s right. If there is still someone looking for me, I would be foolish to run off into the night alone, to let my pride get in the way of my safety.

“Okay,” I agree. “But, I’ll wait for him outside.”

I try again to open the door, but he cages me in from behind, holding it shut firmly with one hand. And though he’s careful not to touch me again, I can feel the heat from his body radiating over the exposed skin of my back.

“Alright, I’ll let you go tonight, Little Rose,” he says, nose buried in my hair, inhaling deeply, as if trying to breath my very essence into his lungs. “I know you need your space. But just know, this isn’t over. If you try to run from me…Iwillchase you. There is no where on thisEarth you could hide from me that I wouldn’t find you. You aremine,and I will hunt you down and bring you back to me.”

A shiver rolls down my spine at his words, and I try to convince myself it’s from fear and nothing else, but I know it’s a lie. I should be afraid, but the truth is, I love his possessiveness. I revel in it, in knowing that he would be willing to fight to keep me when so many others discarded me so easily.

He lets go of the door, taking a step back, and I mourn the loss of him. This time when I go to leave, he lets me. I walk away without looking back—something I would soon come to regret—my heart breaking with every step I take.

Jayce is quiet the whole ride to my house. It’s not until he pulls up in front of my building that he finally speaks.

“My brother has carried the guilt of our sister’s death for years, never allowing himself even one ounce of happiness. Not until you. I know what he did was shitty, but his intentions were pure. He doesn’t think very much of himself, but the truth is, he is one of the best men I know. If you can find it in your heart to forgive him, I swear to you, he would never hurt you. Not on purpose.” His words ring with utmost sincerity.

It's evident in the way he speaks that he loves and respects his brother, but I already know what kind of man Archer is. I didn’t need Jayce to tell me that.

It’s not a matter of forgiveness—maybe it should be, but it isn’t. I already know I’ll forgive him, just as I knowthat even though he went about it all wrong, what he did came from a good place.

The truth is, I just need some time, some space to process everything.

In the end, I exit the car without saying anything, and he waits until I’m inside before pulling away, leaving me alone with my ghosts, the beautiful memories from earlier now tainted as the truth creeps in to haunt me.

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