Page 106 of Symphony for Lies

Oh.

Oh, so thisisabout him.

“Just because I’m with Zane—”

“That’s nothing serious,” she cut off my sentence as if my words were ridiculous. “He’s already spoken for.”

It felt like the floor vanished beneath me. Like someone had ripped the air from my lungs.

He’s already spoken for?

No… that’s not… Before the panic could take hold and the sting of her words could sink too deep, Zane’s voice echoed in my head.Don’t believe anything you hear.

I sucked in a sharp breath. Was this what I shouldn’t believe?

“What’s happening right now doesn’t matter,” Mrs. Cole continued, feigning concern. “But I’ll say this for your own good, don’t be a home wrecker. That never ends well.”

The words sliced through me too deep.

I was speechless.

A small, broken sound pulled me from my frozen state.

Simon.

His tear-filled eyes stared up at me, helpless and trembling.

And in that moment, I hated her.

I hated what she was doing to him.

I swallowed hard, forcing the lump in my throat down.

Kneeling down to Simon’s level, I whispered, “You’re going to be okay. You’re a smart child.” My voice was calm, but inside, everything was wailing.

I turned away from Mrs. Cole, keeping my posture strong and unwavering. I refused to let her see me break.

With as much dignity as I could muster, I walked away.

But I didn’t go home.

I couldn’t.

I flagged down a cab and told the driver to take me to Zane’s house.

When I arrived, everything was quiet. Too quiet.

No lights were on in the house. No movement could be seen in the windows.

My fingers hovered over the doorbell before pressing it.

Silence.

I knocked once, twice.

Nothing.

Something was wrong. I knew it. I felt it.

---