Page 216 of Chasing Hope
My heart is hammering wildly in my chest, so wildly in fact that when she pauses to catch her breath, I fear she can hear it.
“I was six when he said that, Matteo.Six, and he was telling me my pink floral dress teased him all day and it was my fault that he had to have me.” Ripping her eyes off mine, she stares at the ceiling and I’m glad for the reprieve because it allows me to blink away the tears I don’t want her to see. “I could see so clearly that what he was doing was wrong, and yet when it was happening to me, he made me believe it was my fault. So yes, I am an awful person that I feel relieved there were more victims because it means it wasn’t me all along, that it was him and it was a pattern. That he’s depraved beyond measure and I never did anything growing up to warrant it.”
“That doesn’t make you an awful person.”
Sitting up, Evie brings her face close to mine, eyes void of life. “Then what does it make me?”
Lifting my hand slowly so she can track the movement, I gently brush a strand of wet hair behind her ear, my heart galloping as she nuzzles her cheek into my palm. Waiting for her eyes to connect with mine, I whisper, “Someone who had their wings clipped far too young.”
“What if I don’t have the strength to grow them back?”
“I believe you do.” I rub my thumb back and forth on her cheek. “You’re the strongest person I know, Evie. If anyone were able to not only survive but thrive after this, it’s you.”
“Your faith in me is strong, Valenti.”
Quirking a brow, I can’t help but tease, “You last naming me again?”
“The seriousness of the conversation demanded it.”
“Mm-hmm,” I hum. “Look, no one is telling you what you do or don’t have to do.”
“He’s left me no choice.”
“Yes and no. Yes, he’s backed you into a corner. Yes, he’s a fucking psychotic prick, but at the end of the day, you have choices. You always have a choice, Evie, and I think that’s important to know considering.”
She looks at me then, truly looks at me, before pulling back with a blink. “You really think I can nail him to the wall?”
“I think you can do more than that. I think you canruinhim.”
Nodding along, she bites her lower lip. “Let me think on it. A lot has happened over the past two days.”
“Fuck me, it’s only been two days,” I say heavily as I lean back.
Snorting, Evie stands from the tub, leaning over to wrap herself in a towel. “Feels like two lifetimes.”
Rising, I hold out another towel for her hair, savoring the small twitch of her lips at the gesture. “I know what you need right now.” Stepping back, I open the bathroom door, calling over my shoulder, “Wait there for me!”
Chapter 62
Evie
BOOK CLUB BANDITS
LAYLA
okay hear us out…we have book options
CINDY
lots of them
BELLA
and you can have your pick depending on what you need
LAYLA
need a distraction? There’s one about a dystopian world where you are sent to a prison and hunted by the elite. think Hunger Games meets Divergent in a sense
