Page 29 of Splintered Memories
I scanned her as she went back to ignoring me. Physically, I believed she was going to be fine. As long as she took care of herself, the wound on her head would heal in a few days. I could tell by the way she moved and held herself that she was sore from the attack, but her muscles, too, would heal.
But someone out there was trying to hurt her. That fact had to be concerning, even for someone as headstrong as Emersyn.
She had seemed shaken on the drive home after the attack. I’d been worried that she was experiencing some shock. I wouldn’t blame her. But the moment we’d pulled into her garage, it was as if she’d morphed. She’d looked around, taken a few deep breaths, and pulled back her shoulders. When she’d gotten out of the car, she was as steady as stone. Any sign of fear or shock completely disappeared.
I shifted in the armchair, rolling my bad shoulder. “Is all that for the podcast?” I gestured to the items she was piling on her desk.
She nodded without looking at me.
“You do a really good job with it, you know. The podcast.”
Emersyn paused. She looked over at me, eyes wide. “You watch my podcast?” she said, her voice taking on a weird, squeaky quality.
I tilted my head, studying her. “Of course I do. I love it. Granted, I don’t follow many podcasts, but yours is quite impressive.”
She blinked at me, the tops of her cheeks redding. She opened her mouth, but then closed it again. Tearing her gaze back to the merchandise, she shook her head as if to clear it. “Thanks,” she mumbled. “I’ve been working on getting things ready for Emberlight.”
I blinked at her. “Emberlight?”
The Emberlight Festival was an annual event the town put on to welcome in spring. Center Street would be closed off to traffic during theday for a huge farmers’ market. Booths from local businesses and artists and farms would line up and down the street. Food trucks would be surrounded by picnic tables in the local park, where there’d be carnival games and bouncy houses and face painting for kids.
At night, the park would be illuminated with strung-up lanterns and fairy lights. Near the back, right where our little town looked out over the river, there would be a massive bonfire flanked by a few smaller ones where people would gather to drink and talk and roast marshmallows. Emberlight had been one of my sister, Thea’s, favorite town events. We’d go every year.
Emersyn placed an enamel pin on its coordinating pile before she sighed, forcing her eyes back to mine. “The last few years, I’ve had a booth at the festival for the podcast. There are a few fans who always come and hang out with me.”
I stared at her, waiting for the punchline. It never came.
I leaned forward. “You’ve got to be joking.”
Her mouth pulled down, brows narrowing. “Why would I be joking?”
“Emersyn.” I stood, tossing my computer onto the chair. “You were literally attacked today. Less than a week ago, you wereshotat. And now, you want to set up a booth with your literal name on it, surrounded by people you do not know, in the middle of a very public, very crowded, town square?”
Her expression didn’t change. “Well, yeah.”
She was going to be the death of me.IfI could keep her alive, that was.
I shoved a hand through my hair, pulling on the strands. “Did you learn nothing from today?”
Her nose crinkled in anger, and maybe a bit of annoyance. “What did Ilearn?”
I stepped closer, but her desk forced plenty of space between the two of us. “You have to stop being reckless.”
Her head jerked back, as if I’d slapped her. “Reckless?” she hissed. “Where the hell do you get off trying to scold me?”
My hands curled into fists. “I’m not scolding you.” That’s not what I wanted to do, but she needed to understand. “Sneaking off without me today was reckless, Emersyn. I need you to understand the danger you’re in now.”
She sucked in a breath between her teeth. “It sure as hell sounds like you’re scolding me. I wasn’t trying to be reckless. I can take care of myself.”
She repeated the phrase, as if convincing herself as well as me.
“It’s my job to take care of you now,” I said. “I need you to understand that I’m looking out for your best interests.”
“You’re looking out for yourself and for my father. Don’t try to act like this is really for me. I don’t want all this.” She flung a hand toward me, her face twisting with anger. “My father is paying you, and my father has never had my best interests in mind.”
I stilled. Her hands shook slightly, one clutching another enameled pin. It was shaped like a skull, matching the one that sat as decoration on the bookshelf behind her desk.
Emersyn obviously didn’t have a good relationship with her father, but under all the rage thrown into those words, there was a whole lot of hurt too.
