Page 118 of Press Play

“She doesn’t get a say,” I snap. “Not in this. This is on me.”

“That’s bullshit, and you know it.” Robbie steps closer, his voice dropping low, steady. “Amanda will never stop either. You think this is a onetime trick? It’ll keep happening, Theo. Until she uses you up.”

My eyes slam shut. I want him to stop, but he doesn’t.

“Wren’s in this with you. She’s not some fragile thing that needs you to sacrifice yourself for her. If you don’t stop treating her like that, you’re going to lose her for good.”

I look away, my chest heaving. “I’m trying to protect her.”

“And you’re doing it all wrong,” Robbie shoots back. “You don’t save someone by breaking yourself, Theo. You’ll just leave both of you in pieces.”

His words hang in the air, heavy and unavoidable. I press my hands into my face, the weight of everything crashing down on me.

“She’s going to hate me,” I whisper, barely audible.

“Not as much as you’ll hate yourself if you go through with this,” Robbie says softly.

I don’t respond. I can’t. Because deep down, I know he’s right.

“Then what am I going to do?” I ask through my tears. “I can’t let this happen.”

Robbie kneels in front of me so we’re at eye level. “Trust your girl. And for once, stop being so damn stubborn.”

“I do trust her,” I sigh. “But nothing she can say will change my mind. I’m doing this for her.”

He drops his shoulders, and his eyes reflect something I haven’t seen in a really long time—disappointment. “Sleep on it, but you owe her another conversation.”

I swallow the lump in my throat, but it doesn’t go away. “I’ll fix it,” I whisper, more to myself than him.

He studies me for a moment, his disappointment still heavy in his gaze, but he nods as if accepting my halfhearted agreement.

“Good. In the morning, Theo. Don’t put it off.” He pushes himself to his feet, lingering for a moment before heading for the door.

The room is colder once he’s gone, the silence pressing in on me like a physical weight. I lean back against my bed, staring at the ceiling, my mind racing in circles.

Sleep on it.

As if that’ll magically make this situation any clearer. Every path is a dead end. Every choice means losing Wren in one way or another.

But Robbie’s words linger, echoing in the back of my mind like a challenge I can’t shake.You don’t save someone by breaking yourself.

I close my eyes, exhaustion settling over me, but sleep doesn’t come. Not easily. Not with the knowledge that when morning comes, I’ll have to face Wren—and the fallout of everything I’ve already put in motion.

For now, I can only hope I’m strong enough to survive losing her.

Chapter Forty-Two

Wren

The field stretches out endlessly,a dead, barren wasteland of cracked earth beneath my bare feet. The air is heavy, pressing against my lungs, and the silence gnaws at the edges of my mind. I spot her—Mom—standing in the distance. Her figure is shrouded in shadow, but I know it’s her. I’d know that stance anywhere: tall, rigid, unyielding.

I open my mouth to call out, but no sound escapes. It’s like my voice has been ripped from me. I take a step forward, then another, but with every step I take, the distance between us grows. She doesn’t move, but somehow, she’s always just out of reach.

“Stop trying to fix everything, Wren,” she says, her voice sharp and echoing, cutting through the silence like a blade. “You can’t even save yourself.”

Her words slice through me, leaving a hollow ache in their wake. I try to run, but my legs are like lead. The cracks in the ground grow deeper, wider, until water bubbles up from them. At first, it’s a slow trickle, but then it’s rushing, flooding.

“Mom!” I scream, but it’s drowned out by the roar of the water.

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