Page 77 of Quake

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“I punched him first,” he shot back. “He deserved it.”

I began to fret. Tommy was gone, and my fear of Mel’s murderer coming after me again had gone with him, but there was still one thing that would always be out there, waiting to be exploited. The moment I’d ended her suffering.

“Don’t worry about him,” Caleb murmured, taking my hand. “I fixed it.”

I frowned, not understanding.

“His blackmail hinged on me,” he explained. “He’s got nothing to gain anymore. I cut them off. My dad…I won’t be seeing him again. I’ve made that very clear. He wouldn’t dare harm you for fear of losing any chance of winning me back. I am his precious Carmichael legacy, after all.”

“Are you sure?”

He smiled, his lips curving lopsidedly. “Positive.”

It all seemed too easy. Everything was wrapped up into a neat little package, but I still hadn’t explained my past to him. He knew it all, but I hadn’t told him myself. A part of me wanted to believe he was here despite all of it, but another still doubted his intentions.

“Caleb, I—”

“You don’t need to explain yourself. Not to me,” he said.

“I should’ve trusted you,” I murmured, my throat burning. “I should’ve told you what I’d done. I was going to the night I…but your dad got to me first.”

“Shh,” Caleb crooned, lifting my hand to his lips. Kissing my knuckles, he smiled. “I know all of it from start to finish, and I’m still here. I told you how I feel about it in my letter. Nothing has changed. I understand, maybe not all of it, but I understand as well as I can.”

“I…” I was on the verge of tears.

“I still feel the same way about you, Jules. You’re my girl.”

“But my name, my… I lied.”

“You never lied, Jules. You were honest the entire time. I knew you had a troubled past and it might be something fucked up. I knew there were things you weren’t telling me. You never hid that. Besides, a name doesn’t make you who you are,” he said. “It’s your actions that define that shit. You could change your name to Ethel, and you’d still be the same person.”

I cracked a smile. “Ethel?”

“You know what I mean,” he said with a chuckle. “Point is, I’m not going anywhere. You’ve got me hook, line, and sinker.”

His resolve, his strength, his belief in me… It was dazzling.

“Caleb?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

He smiled, his fingers tightening around mine. “Love you, too.”

* * *

My parents arrived that evening.

When the police notified them of the attack, they’d gotten on the first plane from the Gold Coast to Melbourne. They had their faults and hadn’t dealt with Melanie’s death at all, but they were still my mum and dad despite the frustrations. I was glad to see them.

And Caleb? He hadn’t left my side, much to the annoyance of the doctors. He had his own injuries to heal, but he was stubborn. They’d wheeled him away, but he’d just wheeled himself right back.

When my parents barged into my room, they were surprised to see him sitting there, but he won them over immediately with his boyish charm and level head. Even my dad—a man who always loathed to show any emotion whatsoever—shook his hand and thanked him for helping me, all with a tear in his eye.

We’d hardly had a chance to catch our breath when I saw a commotion outside. Peering through the window to the hallway beyond, I saw Dad talking to a man and a woman. He was on his way to my flat to get me a change of clothes since I was allowed to go home in the morning, but hadn’t gotten far, at all.

“Who’s Dad talking to?” I asked, gesturing to Mum.