Page 82 of Sweet Dominion

I nodded. “I’ve even talked to the Crownsville Bandit several times.”

She gave me a suspicious look. “How could you? The bandit is dead.”

“Dead but not resting in peace. Now she’s a ghost haunting Dream Lake. She wears this sort of cowboy hat and is always telling me to dig for wooden daggers. The bandit calls them keys.”

Moni shook her head. “I-I don’t even know. . .where to begin with what you just said.”

I shrugged. “It’s annoying. I always dig up the odd-shaped dagger just so she’ll leave me alone. Plus, her little army of ghosts are always with her. I never know what she can do.”

“Hold up. Lei,whatare you talking about?”

“There are ghosts around the Jones Family mansion and when I was there at night—which happens to be when the ghosts like to come out—the bandit would come to me.”

“Duck said you used to stalk Chanel.”

I scowled. “Then, I’ll be having a talk with Duck—”

“Lei, you were really out there at night. . .stalking Chanel?”

“I would just be there making sure she was okay.”

“For how long?”

“All night.”

Moni widened her eyes. “Did she know?”

“Yes.”

“And. . .that was just. . .what occurred?”

“Yes.” Embarrassment filled me.

Months ago, I would have found this explanation of standing outside of Chanel’s mansion entirely normal. Now, I knew it was odd. Because in the end, she hadn’t loved me at all.

How long did she simply let me stand out there in the cold, looking longingly up at her window?

Hundreds of days.

I’d thought this was love.

Everybody clearly thought I was an idiot, but I didn’t care.

Now. . .as I gazed into Moni’s eyes, I didn’t want her to think badly of me.

“Lei. . .” She blinked again. “I don’t understand.”

Discomfort came. “That was the past—”

“But how long did you do this? A few days?”

I swallowed. “A few years.”

“What the fuck?”

Something odd flashed in her gaze and I didn’t know if it was jealousy, disgust, or shock.

I shifted against her. “Let’s change the subject.”

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