Page 117 of Yours to Keep
I stay for a moment longer, preparing myself for what comes next.
Because I have to tell Eli.
I have to tell him that the woman who helped save him, the one who gave him a chance to escape, also led Adrian straight to him without ever meaning to. And I have to tell him she’s gone now, and he’ll never get to say goodbye.
My throat tightens because I’m tired, and I’m scared, too.
But Eli needs me.
So I take a breath.
Open the door.
And walk back to my boy.
29
Eli
CJ is quiet when he walks back into the room.
I don’t see who called, but I see it on his face. That alone is enough. Something in me tightens before he even speaks.
Finn and Deck go still, too, like the air itself has changed pressure.
CJ doesn’t sit beside me like he normally does. He leaves space between us, like he needs it to breathe through whatever he’s about to say, and takes my hands instead.
“Ree called.”
I blink. I didn’t even know they were in contact, and CJ answers the question before I can ask it.
“Deck found her. Gave her my number for emergencies. We didn’t want to bring you into it until Adrian was found.”
I nod slowly. Waiting. Because something in his voice already tells me this isn’t the end of it.
“Baby…” His thumb moves over my knuckles, slower now. Careful. Like he’s trying not to break me with what comes next.
“Marge passed away this morning.”
For a second, everything goes quiet. Even the room seems to hold its breath. The only sound is Cheap moving softly in his cage.
I nod again.
“Okay.”
My voice sounds wrong. Too steady. Too distant. Like I’m reading a script instead of feeling it.
“She was sick,” I add quietly, like naming it will make it make sense. “This was going to happen.”
But the steadiness of it all feels false. My voice is trying to pretend my chest isn’t already cracking open.
CJ’s grip tightens slightly. Not painful. Just present. Anchoring.
And then I see it.
His eyes flick to Deck.
“There’s more.”
