Page 91 of Inception

“He told me I was going to help him,” I said, trailing a group of kids as they passed around us to get to theDuck Pondgame. “Something about revenge…or vengeance? He didn’t exactly outline his plan for me, but he did mention you and Tessa.”

He looked tense though not surprised.

“He also said you’re keeping secrets from me.” I watched his expression harden. “Things about you and Tessa and the past. Things he thinks I should know about. Is he telling the truth, Gabriel? Are you hiding stuff from me?”

“It’s not as simple as that, Jemma.”

“Yes, it is. You’re either lying to me or you’re not.”

“Of course there are things you don’t know. A lot has happened over the years, but those things aren’t only mine to share.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means you have to talk to your sister.”

“So basically what you’re saying is, you can’t answer any of my questions because of Tessa.”

Isn’t that precisely what Dominic said? That Gabriel was covering up for her. That he would always put her first. Maybe Dominic was capable of telling the truth after all.

“She’s only trying to protect you, Jemma, and this is the only way she knows how to do it. You may not always understand what she does, but she has your best interest at heart.”

“I don’t need her to protect me. Not if that means being lied to all the time. I deserve to know the truth. Whether or not you and my sister want to admit it, I’m already involved in this. Dominic involved me.”

He knew I was right—I could see it in his eyes. I also saw that it didn’t matter one bit. His loyalty was to her and it was clear that he was going to continue protecting her...but for what reason? What could Tessa possibly have done that was so bad that she couldn’t even tell her own sister? Tessa who’d always done everything perfect and right since the day she was born.

It was becoming painfully obvious that if I was expecting the two of them to tell me the truth, I’d probably be waiting around until the end of days.

“Dominic offered to tell me everything.” I put it out there mercilessly, hoping it would raise the stakes a little. It scared me to think that I’d be desperate enough to take him up on his offer, that I was even considering it.

“You can’t trust him.”

“I know,” I agreed, meeting his somber eyes. “But I don’t know if I can trust you either.”

And that scared me even more.

26. BREAKING BREAD

A light drizzle peppered the windshield as Gabriel and I turned onto the main thoroughfare after leaving the carnival. We hadn’t said a word to each other since we left the boardwalk and that was perfectly fine with me. I had no desire to hear another word from him unless that word was birthed from the truth.

I reached forward and turned up the volume to an ear-bending level to drive home the point.

He tipped forward and turned it back down. I could feel his eyes appraising me as though he were trying to decipher a puzzle. “You’re angry with me.”

“I’m surprised you were able to figure that out without Tessa’s direction.”

“That’s not fair.”

“Neither is being lied to all the time,” I shot back, watching plumes of fog spiral in and out of view outside my window. “I trusted you, Gabriel. You were the only one I trusted and now I don’t know if I can believe a single word you say.”

“I’m sorry you feel that way.”

“If you were sorry, you’d tell me the truth. I don’t know anything about you; how youchanged, if youchoseit, how long you’ve been this way. I don’t even know how old you are! How do you think that makes me feel?”

A heavy silence pressed down on us as the windshield wipers swooshed back and forth methodically.

“You need to eat,” he said without looking.

“I don’t need to eat. I need to hear the truth!”

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