Page 143 of Help Me Remember
I shake her off, running now.
The only thing going through my head is that I need to get to him.
Spencer.
I take the stairs two at a time. My hands are shaking, and I can feel my heart against my ribs.
Please, God, don’t take him.
The sirens blare outside, and people are shouting, but I block it all out. Then I get to the top of the steps, and my entire world stops.
“Spencer.” I nearly choke on his name as he grabs me to his chest.
“It’s over. It’s over.”
“We need to move,” Quinn says from behind him.
Spencer lifts me into his arms, carrying me back down the staircase as I sob. My tears stain his shirt, and he only holds me tighter, as if he needs the contact as much as I do.
“Is she okay?” Quinn asks.
I don’t hear what he says, but I’m not okay. I’m insane and upset and angry. I have no idea what happened, but the police are around us, talking to Spencer and Quinn.
I know I’m weak and ridiculous, but this is all too much. Facing the man who killed my brother and tried to kill me, seeing Myles that terrified and Sonya frozen in fear . . . it was all just too much.
He was terrifying, and all the bravery I had before I got here evaporated the second I set eyes on him.
“Brie, you need to answer some questions,” Spencer says while rubbing my back.
I slowly release the death grip I have on him as he lowers my feet to the ground, and I wipe my face. For the next hour, I answer every question I can, and then I watch as Quinn, Spencer, Sonya, and Myles go through the same thing. By the time the police tell us we’re free to go, the sky is dark and we’re all exhausted.
In the end, it worked out, I guess. No charges will be filed against any of us, and my brother’s killer no longer walks this earth.
Still, it isn’t as satisfying as it should be.
I wanted him to be put away, but I should be content that, at least, there is no chance of him ever hurting anyone ever again.
My emotions level off as the adrenaline subsides, and Myles walks over.
“Hey, bud.”
He smiles. “Thank you for saving us.”
Spencer crouches in front of him. “You were very brave to leave that note.”
“Brielle always told us that if we need help, we should ask. I sent the note to a friend who delivered it.”
“That was smart,” I tell him.
“Very,” Spencer follows up.
Sonya comes over, wrapping her arms around her son. “We are going to head home. I am so sorry, Brielle. I am sorry for what he did to you and your family. I am sorry that I was not strong enough to leave him years ago.”
I grip her hand. “It’s over, and it’s not your fault.”
She nods once and then walks off, and it’s the first moment Spencer and I have had alone.
“You scared the fucking hell out of me,” Spencer says, taking my face in his hands.
