Page 17 of Stay with Me

“He’s being a prick again?”

She nodded, a lump pushing up into her throat. She’d offered her brother holy water, for pity’s sake. It was the best gift she could give him. But he’d been absolutely terrible to her in return.

“I say you need a good long break from him.”

“You’re right—”

“This time a holiday someplace far away where you can’t go running back the first time he texts you that he needs groceries or money for an overdue bill.”

She bristled at Isaac’s underhanded way of bringing up her previous failed attempts at taking breaks from Dawson. Before, she’d always gotten fed up with her brother for his demands and his lack of gratefulness. But this time, he’d told her not to come back. This time, the parting felt final.

Yet, what if he texted her in a few days? Would she be able to stick to her resolve to give him exactly what he’d asked for?

“I vow I’ll cut the ties with him.” She started back through the lab.

“You need to, Sybs. He’s draining the life from you. Pretty soon, he’s bound to suck you dry.”

Isaac was right about that too. With every passing day, she’d felt as if she was losing more of herself so that now she didn’t really know who she was anymore.

When she reached the door, she paused. “I’ll be gone most of the day, but I’m leaving my car here.”

He didn’t respond, which meant he was waiting for her to offer more explanation. But what could she say, that she planned to hide in the closet under the stairs, overlap into the past, and then sleep for six hours afterward? He’d have her committed to the nearest asylum.

“Just lock up when you’re done, and I’ll be back later.”

There was another beat of silence.

Was he suspicious of her? The last thing she needed was for him to investigate what she was up to.

At last, he heaved a sigh, one laden with disappointment. “Right, then. Will do.”

Had he hoped for a deeper conversation? That she’d bare her soul? That they’d finally talk about how Dawson had come between them and been the main reason for their breakup? She wasn’t ready for that discussion, doubted she ever would be.

She opened the door, then glanced at him over her shoulder. His attention was riveted to her, the longing in his eyes undisguised. “Many thanks, Isaac. You’re a good friend.”

“I’m always here for you.”

With a nod his way, she exited. As she started toward the closet under the stairs, her heart bowed under the weight of disappointing him. Maybe rather than a holiday, she simply needed to move someplace new where Dawson couldn’t use her, where Isaac wasn’t pining after her, and where memories of her mum didn’t haunt her every day.

She picked up the dagger, opened the closet door, then climbed inside. She turned on her mobile torchlight to aid in closing the door and making sure it was secure. She wouldn’tbe able to fasten the latch on the outside, but from what she could tell, the door would stay closed, and she’d be able to sleep without Isaac noticing she was inside. The confines were tight, only one meter high and one meter wide, about the size of the door.

Nevertheless, she situated herself as comfortably as possible. Then she dug the test tube from her coat pocket. She struggled to get any of the remaining residue to drip onto her finger. After futile efforts, she slid her pinky inside the tube and wiped it around, stretching it as far to the bottom as it would reach to absorb every last molecule.

She set the test tube aside, picked up the dagger, then darkened her mobile. “Time to get on with it.” Taking a deep breath, she stuck her finger in her mouth and washed it clean.

She waited for the blowing and rushing to move through her. But this time, there was nothing. Not the musty scent, not the coldness, and not the strange lighting.

Maybe everything was different because the closet under the stairs was different. She shifted, intending to put her ear against the door and ascertain what she could about the guards, but her hand bumped her mobile where she’d discarded it on the ground. How had it traveled to the past if she hadn’t been holding it?

She picked it up and the screen flared to life.

That was strange.

She cracked open the door to the sight of the very same passageway she’d walked down moments ago.

Disappointment needled her. She hadn’t crossed time. She was still in the present.

Why hadn’t the holy water taken her to the past?

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