Page 70 of Gather the Storm

“Hoping to catch Ruth on her way to school,” I said, setting my bag down. “I’m on my way to work.”

Sarai lifted her eyebrows. “Aren’t you fancy!”

I laughed. “Nothing fancy about the kind of work I’m doing at Cantwell.”

It had only been one day but I’d spent Monday filling out employee paperwork and familiarizing myself with the computer system. I’d almost been able to feel my soul dying.

“Maybe not, but the boss’ son is definitely fancy,” Sarai said with a grin.

“You met Gray?” I asked.

“He came in yesterday,” Cassie said. “Introduced himself and everything, like he was the king of England.”

Sarai laughed and shook her head. “He was nice! And hot.” She looked at Cassie. “You’re working here with Kaylee and that dweeb Drew and I’m still at home with my mom, dad, and Krish while Daisy is living with Blake’s smoking best friends and working with a hot older rich dude. She is definitely winning.” Krish was Sarai’s younger brother.

I thought about Blake, about all the terrible things that had led me to this moment in time — his murder, being accused of his murder, the confession of his best friends.

I didn’t feel like I was winning. I felt backed into a corner, forced to choose: let go of Blake’s murder and what happened the night he was killed, which meant living my whole life never knowing if the right people had paid for his crime, or engage in a long game of deception to find out the truth.

In an alternate universe, Blake was still alive and I was attending design school in the city, making new friends, losing my virginity to some artsy student in my dorm instead of fighting to keep it around three very big and very dangerous men.

“Does Ruth know you’re here?” Cassie asked, changing the subject.

I shook my head. “I’m hoping the element of surprise will force her to talk to me.”

Cassie tipped her head in sympathy. “She’s still not talking to you?”

“Not really,” I said. “I mean, we text and stuff, but she’s definitely distant.”

“I’m sorry,” Cassie said.

“She’ll come around,” Sarai said. “You’re sisters. It’s not like she can be mad forever.”

I laughed. “You obviously don’t know Ruth as well as you think.”

“It sounds like you’re going to need caffeine,” Cassie said.

“So much caffeine,” I said. Ruth was just the beginning of my day. I had eight hours at Cantwell ahead of me. Plus, I needed to finish removing the wallpaper in the library after work.

Cassie moved farther down the counter and started making my usual, a latte with oat milk and a splash of vanilla syrup.

“What have you been up to?” I asked Sarai. She’d intentionally missed the application deadlines to transfer to a four-year university — much to her parents’ annoyance — and had a few months’ grace period over the summer before they’d start harassing her again.

“Nothing really,” she said. “I can’t tell if I love it or hate it.”

“I can see that,” I said. It was nice not to have schoolwork hanging over my head now that I’d finished my two-year degree, but I would have gotten bored fast if I hadn’t had the house and my internship.

“Think Cantwell has any other openings?” she asked.

“Not that I’ve heard,” I said. “But I’ll let you know if I hear of anything.”

She sighed. “Guess it’s just pool time and smut books for me then.”

I grinned. “Poor you.”

Cassie returned with my coffee and one of my favorite bran muffins. “The muffin’s on me today.”

I gave her my card. “Thanks, Cass.”

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