Page 54 of Shattering

"So, I wormed my way into her life. And into yours."

He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees, his gaze distant, lost in memory.

"After a while, I told her part of the story. I made her promise not to tell you."

Gray flinched, but only slightly.

"And then your mother got sick."

Cadi glanced at Gray then, her stomach twisting.

Gray had always had a complicated relationship with Aisling. He loved her fiercely, possessively, but there had always been something unspoken between them—a quiet grief that neither of them ever fully addressed. Sometimes, Cadi thought he hated her.

Callum's voice dropped.

"I knew I had to see her before it was too late."

His fingers clenched, his voice thickening.

"My mother came to see her a month before she died. She wanted to say she was sorry. To beg her forgiveness. She was so alone."

A muscle jumped in Gray's jaw.

"And Aisling forgave us."

The words landed heavily, settling between them like a ghost.

For the first time, Gray blinked, really blinked, and Cadi could see the way his fingers curled tighter, like he was trying to keep himself together.

Callum sighed, shaking his head.

"Then Cadi got pregnant." He gave a wry, almost bitter chuckle. "And I wanted to delay telling you the truth a little longer."

Gray's head snapped up, his stare cold, razor-sharp.

Callum shrugged slightly, but his expression was serious.

"And then Tomos was born."

His voice softened.

"And I loved him."

Gray staggered slightly, barely perceptible, but Cadi saw it.

Callum's voice thickened.

"I was worried, Gray."

He let out a slow, shaking breath.

"I was worried you'd hate me."

Chapter 27

Flashback—Derry, 1994

The playground was loud and chaotic, children yelling, chasing, laughing. In the distance, the low thrum of a helicopter cut through the noise, its shadow sweeping across the schoolyard. No one looked up—by then, they were used to it. Used to the security checks, the way their parents whispered at night about who had been arrested, who had disappeared. But two boys stood apart from the others, one a little over five, the other barely four.

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