Page 58 of The Way Back Home
He extended his hand, as if to approach, but she immediately stepped back. His hand dropped to his side.
“You must hate me.”
Teagan reached for the soul-deep anger she’d kept locked deep inside, only to find that it wasn’t there. The man standing before her wasn’t the abusive drunk she remembered. There was no rage in his eyes, no arrogance in his stance, no chip on his shoulder. If anything, Tony was a broken man.
That realization neither pleased nor displeased her. All she felt was a profound sense of apathy and maybe a tiny stab of pity. Tony had no control over her anymore. No place in her life.
“I wouldn’t blame you,” he said, his gaze dropping to the ground in front of her feet. “You have every right to hate me. The things I did … God, Teagan. I am so sorry.”
She nodded in acknowledgement. Did they mean anything? No, not really. In the end, it didn’t matter. Neither one of them could change the past, and she couldn’t find it in her heart to forgive him. Maybe she would someday, but today was not that day.
Teagan took a deep, cleansing breath, barely noticing the protest of her ribs. Her mission hadn’t changed. There was still Josh to deal with.
She set foot in the direction of her childhood home. Before long, she was walking familiar trails, though there were fewer of them now than there used to be. Developments had sprung up where there had once been only trees and fields of black coal ash, and she skirted around condos and single-family dwellings that looked newly built.
The farm where she’d grown up hadn’t changed much. The trees were a little bigger. The barn, more run-down. Smoke rose lazily from the chimney of the old house, which, like the barn, had seen better days, but it looked as if someone was at least trying to keep it up.
Teagan wondered who lived there now. Tony? Or someone else? Not that it mattered. The house had ceased being a home the day her mother died.
Continuing on, Teagan made the loop back toward the town. The decrepit low-income housing where Josh had once lived had been torn down, replaced by a community park. Instead of crumbling row homes, there were now young trees, benches, and brightly colored playground equipment, currently covered in snow.
She wondered absently what had become of Josh’s mom, then again realized she didn’t care. Josh’s mom hadn’t beaten him like Tony had beaten her, but she had ignored her son. Pretended he didn’t exist, left him to fend for himself. Teagan wasn’t sure which was worse—the abuse in her childhood or the neglect in Josh’s. Both, she supposed, could break something inside of a child.
Her stroll down memory lane nearly complete, Teagan walked into Miller’s Diner. She waited in line with everyone else, ordering a large coffee to go. As the woman smiled and handed Teagan her change, recognition sparked in her gaze, and her face went white.
“Hello, Mary,” Teagan said softly.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
NOAH
Noah’s knuckles turned white against the dark leather of the steering wheel. His eyes were on the sideview mirror, watching Teagan walk out of his life.
Every cell in his body screamed for him to go after her, to keep her close. But a promise was a promise, even if it did make his chest hurt like hell.
That didn’t mean it was over. Far from it.
He sat there in the parking lot for a long time, hoping against hope that she would change her mind.
She didn’t.
He hated this. Hated that she’d managed to burrow so damn deep under his skin in a few short days. Hated even more that she could walk away without so much as a backward glance.
Cursing, he shifted the truck into gear and forced himself to head back up the mountain. When he couldn’t stand it anymore, he reached over and tappedthe screen on the dash. As soon as the connection was made, he said, “Tell me you’ve got eyes on her.”
Alex’s snort was audible. “Yeah, I’ve got her. She’s good; she knows how to move. You sure she’s not an asset?”
She was—just not the kind Alex meant.
“Where did she go?” Noah asked, curious about Teagan’s priorities.
“Stopped at a flower shop, then to her mother’s grave,” Alex answered, which made sense. It was where Noah would go if he were in a similar situation.
“There was a guy there,” Alex continued. “Pretty sure it was the stepdad.”
Noah tensed, gripping the wheel in preparation to hang a U-ey and head right back into town.
As if sensing his twin’s reaction, Alex said, “Relax. She’s fine. Walked around for a bit, then went into the diner a few minutes ago.”
