Page 70 of You Shouldn't Have Come Here

I offered no expression because he didn’t deserve one. His lip trembled when I turned on my foot.

“Grace, wait!” he called out.

Without looking back or saying anything, I went into the ranch house and let the door close behind me. It was the last place I wanted to be but I didn’t have a choice. Calvin was a liar. That much was clear. But I wondered now... was he something worse than that?

34.

Calvin

I considered running after Grace, but I needed to get rid of Charlotte once and for all. I thought I already had, but some animals put up a fight. She was ruining everything. Grace was right. I should have made sure Charlotte didn’t come around again. She looked at me the same way I looked at Grace, and I knew that was dangerous because she couldn’t have me.

“A mistake?” Charlotte’s voice shook. Tears gathered at the corners of her bloodshot eyes.

I nodded. It wasn’t new information, so I didn’t understand why she was back here again.

Her skin flushed as she glared at me. “I’ll show you a mistake.” It came off like a threat, but I wasn’t sure what she was threatening.

I raised my chin. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“I slept with Joe,” she seethed. “Last night.” Charlotte pushed past me “And I told him everything!”

My eyes went wide.

“Told him what?” I yelled, reaching for her. My fingers gripped her arm, pressing into her skin. She swung her other arm, thrusting her balled fist into my eye.

I pushed her hard—too hard. She fell back onto the ground, her skull hitting the gravel with a thud. She laid there for a moment, stunned. When she sat up, Charlotte pressed her fingers against the back of her head and brought them in front of her face. There was blood.

“Char, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.” I tried to help her up. She swatted my hand away and stood on her own, wobbly and unsteady. She touched the back of her head again and looked at her fingers. More blood.

“Let me take you home,” I pleaded.

She looked at me through her splayed, bloodstained fingers.

“I’m done keeping your secrets.”

“Secrets? What are you talking about? What did you tell Joe?” My hands ran over my face, pulling at my skin. I took a deep breath.

She backed away as if she were afraid of me, afraid of what I would do. Then she turned and marched angrily back to her car, the back of her head saturated with blood from the gouge.

I thought she would speed out of here, but she took her time starting her car and driving off. I looked down at my own hands. They weren’t still. They shook like an addict going through withdrawals. I tried to steady them but they wouldn’t. Her vehicle disappeared down the road, and my mind went back to her parting words.I’m done keeping your secrets.What did Charlotte know?

35.

Grace

I needed to get out of here. Away from this ranch, this town—hell, the whole state of Wyoming. Charlotte was a problem, a major one at that. Then there was the sheriff and the missing woman. Could Calvin have done something to her? That changed everything. I packed up most of my things in case I needed to make a quick escape. Without a working car or phone, I didn’t know how I’d get out of here. I could steal Calvin’s truck or call from the house phone—if it even worked. I hadn’t heard it ring once since I got here. A new plan was needed. Maybe the best way to go about this was to act as though I was fine, at least until my car got fixed.

A knock on the door pulled me from my thoughts.

“Can I come in?” Calvin asked.

I took a seat on the bed and grabbed a book from my nightstand, pretending to read. “Yeah.”

The door opened and Calvin walked in carrying that damn teddy bear. I wanted to rip the stupid thing’s head off.

“This was on the couch.” He took a seat on the bed, handing it over. I tossed it aside.

Calvin hung his head. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Charlotte. It really was aone-timething. I was just feeling sorry for myself and, well, she was here. One thing led to another.” He shrugged. “It’s no excuse though. I should have told you.”

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