Page 131 of Sage Haven
Resignation settled in her shoulders, heavier than anything I had put there.
She dropped her head, as if the weight of me knowing was too much to bear.
I forced myself to stay in control.
To stay still and not let it show how much it was affecting me.
“How are you feeling?” I asked.
I didn’t know why.
I already knew the answer.
She looked up at me again. Her gaze was empty, hollowed out.
“Good,” she said. “Or as good as I can be.”
Then she let out a dry laugh.
It made something in me tighten until it was almost unbearable.
But I needed to push forward.
I needed to know.
“How many men do you remember being there?”
I kept my voice low. Even. But the burn in my throat was rising fast.
Her throat worked as she swallowed hard.
Her fingers clenched into the fabric of her pants like she was fighting not to come apart at the seams.
“Five,” she whispered.
A cold chill ran through me.
I felt it in my bones.
In my blood.
“Was your ex one of them?”
She shook her head, “No.”
That didn’t make sense.
Klay’s circle was a much tighter knit group three others at max. He didn’t let anyone in unless he had a reason. Unless they were bound by blood or debt.
“Did he know what happened?” I hated the way my voice sounded. Dread was creeping in. Poisoning me.
Her breath shook. “Yes.”
Unbelievable.
“When I was running away,” she continued, “I found him. Told him everything—” Her voice cracked. “—but he didn’t believe me.”
The words hit harder than I expected.
