Page 28 of Veil of Secrets

I elbow him in the ribs, pivot, and plant a boot in his knee.

He drops again, wheezing.

“I’m not yours,” I say, standing over him.

His breath comes ragged. Blood drips from his nose. He glares at me, red-eyed and furious.

“You’re gonna regret this,” he mutters.

“Already did. For years.”

I walk away.

Back toward the end of the pier.

My legs shake by the time I reach the edge.

I grip the rail and breathe through it.

I don’t cry.

I don’t scream.

I just breathe.

Long and deep, until the fog coats my lashes and the sea steals the last of Tommy’s stench from the air.

He’s not a nightmare anymore.

He’s here.

But I’m not that girl.

And he doesn’t get to win.

Then I hear him behind me again.

The shuffle of shoes on wet planks. The breath pulled through teeth. The kind of sound that used to mean run—back then, when I had nowhere to run to.

I whip around.

He’s coming.

Tommy’s eyes burn now. Not confused. Not sad. Just furious.

“You think you’re better than me now?” he snarls, walking fast.

I don’t answer. My hand finds the edge of my chain instead.

“You think some new guy fixes what I did to you?” he spits.

He grabs me again, hard this time—fingers sinking into my upper arm, yanking me toward him like I’m his fucking prize.

I shove him.

Hard.

He grips tighter. My feet skid on the slick wood. I lose ground.

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