Page 137 of Redeemed

“Please,” Haven gasps out. She’s eyeing the knife, only a few feet away on the floor.

Colton picks it up and slides it into his pocket. “You don’t want to die, angel,” he says softly.

“You don’t… know… what I want,” she manages. She’s still struggling against me, but she’s too tired to pull free from my grip.

“That’s the thing. I do. Better than you do yourself right now. Haven, I… I’m sorry. I went too far. I never meant to make you feel like this.”

When Colton reaches out to touch her, she shies away, and I shift her in my lap so she’s farther away from him.

“Don’t,” I bite out. “And don’t think that’s all you have to do to make up for this.”

“I—” He stops. There’s guilt in his eyes as he watches Haven, and it looks genuine, but it’s not enough.

“You’re going to do a hell of a lot more than just apologizing, Colton Heverly. A hell of a lot more.”

Lucas

Pullinguptomystepdad’s house has dread settling in my stomach like a lead weight. This is where I lived for the last half of high school, but it never felt like home.

When my mom married Greg, we left our hometown to move to Birchwood. It got us away from Dad, and it made all our financial troubles disappear overnight. But Greg never bothered to account for the fact that he was wrenching us away from everything Aurora and I knew. Our grandparents, our friends, our school, our home.

Greg’s support is the reason that the life has returned to Mom’s eyes. He’s the reason she’s made so much progress in healing from my dad’s abuse. He’s also the reason Aurora can pursue her dreams.

That doesn’t mean I have to like being part of the Grayson family.

Greg prioritized our safety, and I’ll always be grateful he got Mom and Rora away from Dad, but I’ll never forgive him for uprooting our lives, either. I begged them to let us finish out high school in our hometown, but Greg wanted us in Birchwood as soon as possible. The only reason I don’t completely hate him is because he let Xander move with us.

If I can avoid talking to him, I always do, so I don’t head into the house. Instead, I walk around back to the little patio outside Aurora’s dance studio. There’s a sliding glass door that leads inside, and I open it, frowning at the fact that she left it unlocked.

Aurora catches sight of me mid-pirouette and lands early. “Lucas!”

I force a smile. “Hey, Rora.”

After turning off her music, she crosses the studio to me. She’s in one of her light pink leotards with a sheer skirt tied at her hips, but what catches my attention is the exhaustion she tries to mask with a bright smile.

It kills me, realizing we’re both doing the same thing for each other. Putting on a show so we don’t worry about the other too much.

“You okay?” I ask, unable to hide the concern in my voice. “You eat breakfast this morning?”

“Ugh, chill, Luc.” She rolls her eyes. “Jeremy and I ate breakfast together. Now, what are you doing here?”

“Can’t I drop in to say hi to my little sister?”

Crossing her arms, she cuts me with ayou-can’t-pull-that-shit-with-melook. She knows better than anyone how much I hate this damn house. I haven’t been here in over a month, although I try to catch up with Rora at least once a week. Just… not here.

“Fine.” Running a hand through my hair, I take a deep breath. “Could I… could you give me a couple of your anxiety pills?”

Her face falls. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing. They’re not for me.”

She narrows her eyes.

“Promise, Rora. They’re for a friend. She’s having a really hard time. Panic attacks and all that shit.”

“Oh.” Her expression softens. “Yeah, you can have some. I’ve been doing a little better lately, anyway.”

“You have?”

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