Page 46 of Traces of Her

Twenty-Eight

ROWENA

I’VE SAT BY AND WATCHED THE HOURS slowly pass with no sign of Griffin. One can only sit for so long with troubled thoughts polluting their mind before simply sitting is no longer an option. I’ve been pacing back and forth by the front door and window like a caged animal for quite some time now. I’m completely helpless, stuck alone in this house knowing he’s at Jared’s, dealing with God knows what.

Not long after he left, an unfamiliar black SUV parked down the street, close enough for Griffin’s house to be in perfect view. I know well enough to know that it isn’t coincidental, nothing ever is. The key is to act normal and refrain from drawing more attention to myself, all while keeping a close eye on them without letting them know that they’ve been spotted.

Grabbing a book, I curl up on the couch with a perfect view of the SUV and the driveway. I skim through the pages without reading a single word. My senses are heightened as I continue to be aware of my surroundings in a discreet fashion.

A flash of light on the street startles me, grabbing my attention. As I look up, I see the SUV quickly pulling onto the road and drive past the house without stopping. The windows are tinted dark enough that I can’t see inside from where I’m sitting. My eyes follow the car as another set of lights shine in my peripheral vision from the opposite direction. As the lights get closer and the SUV disappears, I glance over as Griffin’s car pulls into the driveway, parking in front of the garage.

Jumping to my feet, I race to the front door, unlocking it and pulling it open just as he was about to put in his key. He stands there staring at me with his arms hanging by his sides in defeat. His face is full of torment and despair, but a wave of relief passes through his dark eyes. He comes to me in a rush and wraps his arms around me, holding me tightly against him, burying his face in my hair.

“You’re okay,” he murmurs against my neck, over and over in disbelief.

Breaking away from him, I grab his face, cupping it within my hands. “I’m okay, Griffin,” I reassure him. His troubled eyes frantically search mine looking for something he won’t find within them. We’re both lost in the dark with no light at either end of the tunnel.

“I can’t trust him,” he says, running his hands down my arms to my elbows. “Actually, I never could, but he’s gone too far this time and now he’s even coming after me.” He pauses his rambling and takes a deep breath. “He doesn’t just have darkness within him anymore… he is the darkness.”

Griffin speaks with resignation as if he’s finally seeing Jared for the evil that he truly is and has given up on any chance of salvation for his brother. But I know Griffin better than to just accept this epiphany for that without there being a reason behind it.

“What happened?” I ask, stroking his jawline with my thumbs.

He swallows hard as his eyes grow pained. “I was too late.”

Too late?

My stomach instantly drops as my chest tightens.

No.

My hands drop to his shoulders.

“She died?” I whisper.

Griffin drops his head, slowly shaking it and I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding in. “Not physically,” he says, staring at the floor.

Grabbing his head, I lift it up for him to look at me. “What happened, Griffin?”

He takes a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment. “Jared wasn’t there when I got there, but a couple of his fucked up guys were. They were in the basement taking turns raping Lydia for who the fuck knows how long.”

My hands drop from his face as my eyes grow wide, staring into his, searching for something I won’t find within them.

Any light in this tunnel has been extinguished.

“I killed them,” he admits. “Jared threatened your life and mine, anything he could threaten me with, but I couldn’t kill him, not when he had men sitting out here watching you.”

“I know,” I tell him quietly, wrapping my arms around him. He draws me in, kissing the top of my head as he rests his cheek against me. “Did you clean everything up?” I ask.

He nods against my head. “I took care of it,” he assures me.

The peace that settles between us should be unsettling, but this has become our reality. The devil lurks within the darkness and death skulks around every corner. We’ve both lost so much already in our lives, what we have between us is sacred and something no one can ever take from us.

We hold each other for minutes or hours, time has no meaning as we relish in the comfort of our love.

But peace never lasts long.

It’s only ever the calm before the storm.

Griffin’s phone rings in his pocket and he releases me while slowly pulling it out of his pocket. He stares at the bright screen and looks up at me, his eyes filled with dread. I glance down at his phone and feel the air leave my lungs.

It’s the storm.

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