Page 37 of The Broken Queen
“Why can’t you?” I tucked my fingers into a tight fist at my side, hating that this felt like another rejection. Asking him was dangerous; once my father and Scotty realized what he’d done, and to what extent they’d plotted, his life might be forfeit.
“I have to get back and try to keep Markos off your trail for as long as possible. If I’m fast enough, he won’t know for a few days or even a week that you’re gone.”
Someone cleared their throat behind us, and I heard the helicopter engines begin to start up.
“I’m sorry, Presley. For everything.” Adrian pulled me into his arms and pressed his lips to mine in a kiss that felt like goodbye. I was about to tell him that I could find a way to forgive him, if we just gave ourselves some time. But someone pulled me away, and as I looked up, I saw a clenched jaw and amber stare that drove a hole into my chest.
“We were told you’d be returning with us,” Kingston snapped harshly.
I tried to pull my arm free, but he held firm. “I am, but let me say goodbye.”
Adrian stepped closer and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear before closing the space and pressing his mouth there, whispering, “I love you. Promise me, my darling, if I never see you again, then you need to chase the sun. Let it love you the way you deserve to be loved and finally embrace that fire that’s been simmering in your soul that you’ve been too nervous to release.”
With one last kiss to my cheek, Adrian placed a note in my palm right as Kingston pulled me away. Ducking my head, I moved to the open door of the helicopter and then settled into the seat next to Alex. Across from me sat Gio, who was staring at me as if I’d stolen something from him.
I glanced out the window and watched as Adrian tucked his hands into his pockets and watched us fly away. Once we were high enough and hadn’t been shot down, I pulled out the note he’d given me.
I did some digging. I have a picture of that night, who killed my father. It’s been scrubbed from the internet, but I have someone who can find the things that don’t exist. I’m going to email you the image. Be safe, my love.
Chapter 14
Gio
Iused to be jealous that Kingston had something as tangible as soil to touch when he felt anxious. It became something that tied him to Presley when they were younger, too, with the glass jars full of dirt that she’d bring him. It was foolish of me to assume I could ever have something as vast as the stars to share with Presley.
I should have known that we’d outgrow the notion that anything could connect us after our time apart broke so much between us. But for some reason I thought…I had this stupid inclination that the map on my back would be a place holder for the missing days in between us. Now, having her back at the manor, she was close and yet seemed further than she’d ever been.
We’d arrived by jet over a week ago, and she hadn’t uttered a single word to us. Not on the plane, not in the car on the way home…she clung to Alex like a second skin and allowed my sister to fill us in on everything that took place. Presley didn’t add why Adrian was suddenly kissing her goodbye, or why the fuck she was forced to execute someone. Or who it was. There were so many questions I still had, but I knew I hadn’t earned the answers. I wanted to… but I had no clue where to begin.
She’d moved into Uncle Decker and Aunt Mallory’s wing of the house after hearing that they’d opted not to return for the foreseeable future. This came after Carter was put at risk those four months ago when we’d fucked everything up by going after the motorcycle club, and that shit followed us here. It was something I was still trying to atone for, and that had several ramifications. One of which apparently included losing my cousin’s presence in the manor.
Presley hadn’t come out of the wing. Not to train, or to seek out her parents, or to walk outside. Nothing, and while I had caught sight of her mom and dad walking over frequently to visit her, Presley would remain inside, tucked away like a little recluse.
I was ready to test the waters and see if I could get her to start talking to me, but I wanted something that would remind her that once upon a time, we were best friends. Before the emotions and feelings and all the leaving…we were there for each other through everything. I didn’t have dirt, and I couldn’t capture a star, but I had crushed pieces of our past just rotting away in my chest that had to count for something.
With a silent inhale, I rapped my knuckles against the exterior door to the wing of the house she had moved into. Seconds passed, but nothing happened, so I tried again, this time with more force. Glancing around the hallway, I tried to gauge whether someone would have a front row seat to how embarrassed I was about to be if she chose not to open the door, but it was completely empty. I didn’t hear Scotty’s dogs or anyone training in the gym. Just dead silence.
Another minute ticked by, so I knocked again.
The door suddenly opened on my third rap. “What?”
Presley gripped the bronze knob while clenching her teeth. Laying eyes on her again after so long made something in my chest flutter. I had seen her in the jet, and on the ride home…but I hadn’t had a chance to really look at her, not like this. Where she was unguarded and unfiltered, her raw self that always existed before she left us…before we left her. The blue in her eyes that always reminded me of the hottest part of a fire, warning of total combustion, waged a silent war with mine.
“I wanted to check on you,” I mustered a response after feeling like my voice had been scraped clean of all sound.
Her nails dug into the wood near her face, just barely holding the door open. Her teeth literally snapped shut as she replied coldly, “Well, you’ve checked. I’m still hurt, Gio. Still pissed and angry and not interested in seeing you.”
The door slammed shut before I could say anything else.
The next day,I arrived at her door with a bouquet of marigolds. I hadn’t heard if she’d ventured out of her room or not, but I had to assume she was still in there. My knuckles rapped against the wooden surface again, just like they had the day before. This time there were less butterflies in my stomach, but seemingly more wasps. It didn’t flutter so much as knot, making me weary of another negative encounter.
There was no answer again. So, I continued to knock, until I was pounding against her door. I knew it was rude, but I needed to start making progress with her, and I couldn’t get anywhere unless she agreed to talk to me.
Finally, the door swung open, revealing another angry version of my best friend. “I’m going to seriously hurt you if you keep making me get up from the couch.”
I shoved the flowers between us, watching nervously as her gaze dropped. Those dark brows raised, hitting her hairline, which gave me a chance to take in her slick hair and how long it had gotten since I’d last run my fingers through it.
Her lips pressed together as she let out a sigh. “Why did you bring me these?”
