Page 60 of Tender Heart
I should have been with her when she needed me.
She should have told me.
I stretch, glancing at the time on the satellite phone.
21:50
Hell, I must have fallen asleep.
Hunting and sunshine will do that to a man. The wind howls outside and the lanterns flicker wildly. I rise and shut the windows, all but the one on the western side. The howls turn desperate, rattling the little wooden hut where it’s planted in the sandy earth.
I swear I hear my name.
But it can’t be. It’s just memories tormenting me, like they’ve done since that day.
I ignore them and decide to rest my body on the bunk.
When the screaming wind doesn’t let up, I slide an arm over my face.
The mind plays tricks on a man when he’s down. With my head all messed up over Evie and the memories this old hut brings, I try to ignore the way the wind sounds like the last moments of Ava’s life. The vision that’s played through my head since the first inkling of feeling something deep for Evie, where my mind puts her in Ava’s place.
And I lose them both.
Seventeen
EVIE
My hands tremble around the note. The obliterated remains of a blue monarch butterfly litter the table. It’s been hours, and only now have I drummed up the courage to open the letter.
I wish I hadn’t done that.
Panic has me strung out. With clammy hands, I pluck up the mug of water on the table and try to ease my parched throat before replacing it to the table beside the letter.
Words bleed together on the page as I try to force air into my lungs.
If I close my eyes, maybe it will morph into a publishing contract, or maybe a letter from Livvy...
I slam my eyes shut.
One.
Breathe in.
Two.
Breathe out.
Three.
Breathe in.
Four.
Breathe out.
I snap my eyes open.
The violent scrawl across the page stares back at me. Whimpering, I drop the page and back away from the table, hand covering my mouth.
