Page 76 of Vendetta

“What is it honey?” she asked.

I took a deep breath, steadying myself.

“I knew Emory. We went to the same high school senior year.”

“Oh, how wonderful!” she said cheerfully. Her smile slowly began fading as she noticed the look on my face.

“I didn’t know her well. I offered her a ride home once, but that was the most we ever spoke. I was… I was there—The night of the New Year’s Eve party.”

She set her tea down, concern written over her features as she let me continue. My eyes burned as tears threatened to fall with my next words, shame threatening to lodge the words in my throat.

“It was my friends and I that she went with. I watched as… as everything happened.”

She slowly brought a hand up to cover her mouth, her eyes getting watery as she realized what I was saying.

“I need you to know that I did not participate in any way. I actually tried to stop them, I really did. I ended up calling my mom to pick me up because I didn’t want to be around my friends when they were acting like that, and I even tried to get Emory to come with me, but she wanted to stay. I should have tried harder, I had no idea what would happen.”

Amelia remained frozen in place, absorbing all of this. My voice was raspy as I continued, a tear slipping free and making its way down my cheek, but I forced myself to keep going.

“I just wanted to tell you that I am so deeply sorry for not having done more. It’s something that I will have to live with for the rest of my life. But I needed you to know. And I would understand if you didn’t want me in your house, I truly would. But I just needed you to know how sorry I am. I wish I could go back in time, I wish there was anything I could do to make up for your loss. Mrs. Astor—Amelia, I am so sorry.”

Tears freely flowed between the both of us now, the wound of Emory’s death opened once more as I broke Cashton’smother’s heart. It wasn’t sure what I had expected to happen, but it hadn’t been for Amelia to make her way over to me and wrap me in a hug.

“Landry, honey. Emory made her own choices. What pains me right now is hearing you blame yourself for something that was out of your control.”

I tried to pull back from her, to tell her that it had been in my control. I could have made Emory leave, I could have insisted harder or found a way to get in contact with her parents to tell them what was going on. As if reading my mind, she continued.

“Emory could be quite stubborn when she wanted to be. If she didn’t want to leave, there was nothing you could have said or done to get her to. It’s not your fault, Landry.”

I began crying at those words, the words that I had needed to hear more than I had realized.

“You’re a wonderful girl, Landry. I could have told you that within minutes of being around you. If you keep blaming yourself, it’s going to break my heart. Promise me that you will stop blaming yourself?”

“Okay,” I sobbed, her hug around me tightening. I hadn’t realized just how badly I had missed having a mother’s embrace. My mom had been my best friend, and feeling Cashton’s mother hold me with so much warmth healed a part of me that I hadn’t realized had been broken.

“Cashton told me that your mother passed away. I know firsthand what that’s like, and I also know that a mother is impossible to replace. But I need you to know that you can always come to me. Anything you need, Landry, whether it’s someone to talk to, take you shopping, or even if you just need ahug. Everybody needs a hug from their mom every once in a while. And I’m so sorry that you lost yours. But I’m here for anything you need.”

My sobs turned into full-blown bawling. Cashton’s mother was truly an angel.

“Wait…” I asked, pulling away just enough to meet her face. “Cashton talked about me?”

She laughed at that, wiping the last of her tears as she grabbed me by the shoulders.

“Honey, of course he did. Do you seriously think that after calling me for the first time in over a year to ask if he could come for lunch, and then telling me he was also bringing a girl over for the first time, that I wouldn’t have questions?”

I laughed in return, the smile returning to both of our faces. Amelia Astor might be my new favorite person.

CHAPTER 39

CASHTON

“So, Landry, huh?”

I rolled my eyes, knowing this had been coming. I sat in one of the wingback chairs in David’s office as he poured us each a glass of bourbon from the mini bar.

“Why bother asking when you know you’re not going to get anything out of me,” I argued.

“All I’m saying is that in all the time that I’ve known you, I have yet to see you bring home a girl until now. It must be pretty serious.”

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