Page 19 of Fractured Fate

“Stop it,” she whispered, barely able to muster up a rebuttal. He spoke the truth.

The separation from her family made the depression she struggled with threaten to drown her. Then the flower deliveries started. Coupled with the uncomfortable feeling of being followed, the depression gnawed at her, and it all became too much, causing her to need medication again like when she was younger. She quit back then because of the unpleasant side effects, but so far, they hadn’t plagued her this time.

“There’s no need to worry, Cherry. You don’t have to be alone anymore. I’m here for you.”

Isolated and scared was a combination she didn’t handle well.

Even with talking to Aiden and her parents often, she still felt alone. Deep down, she felt like an outsider.

Not her parents’ biological daughter. Not good enough to become one of Blackthorn’s elite. And she couldn’t shake the feeling her new friends kept things from her. Another blow that let her know she didn’t fit in with those that attended Blackthorn Academy. She wasn’t enough. The only outlet she had was…

Her breathing stalled as she jerked her gaze toward her bedroom.

She jumped from the loveseat and ran toward her nightstand. Pulling open the drawer, she exhaled a heavy sigh of relief when she saw the little leather-bound book in the drawer. Still there.

“Something wrong?”

“No.” She crawled over her bed to the window and pulled her curtain closed.

“Don’t lie to me, Sweet Cherry.”

She ground her teeth, getting to her feet.

Depression didn’t make her a doormat who would tuck tail and play a cat and mouse game. She always strived not to let people run over or bully her. A voice over the phone would not get to her. She needed to keep reminding herself of that. A lot.

“Do you understand?”

“Yes,” she bit out, unable to keep the trembling anger out of her voice.

Knowing this psychopath had entered her apartment and read her private thoughts gave her mixed emotions. Indignation that someone had the audacity to invade her privacy. Fear that someone could get into her apartment without her knowing.

What else had he messed with? Had he taken anything?

She looked around her room for anything out of place or missing, but she didn’t know for sure. With the group project and her mood lately, she could easily lose something and not realize it for a long time.

Breathing in and counting to ten in her head, she exhaled and asked, “Why did you call me?”

“I don’t know.”

That surprised her.

“Something about your expression today in the food court burrowed into my heart. I needed to speak to you. I’m sorry it’s taken me this long to make the connection beyond flowers.”

She suppressed the urge to tell him he could wait another ten years for all she cared.

Feeling violated and angry, she wanted to end the call.

“I will make more of an effort. For now, I need to go.” He sighed when she didn’t speak. He didn’t deserve her words. “Very well. We may or may not speak soon.” He paused, then spoke with a light tone. “Oh, and Cherry?”

“What?” It was difficult to keep the contempt out of her voice.

His voice lowered, and the threat in his tone came through loud and clear. “Leaving Athens changes nothing.”

5

DIFFERENT WORLDS

The long weekend finally arrived, and Charlotte welcomed it with open arms. Her classmates had noticed how on edge she acted after her phone conversation with her new unwanted friend, so after her professors canceled tomorrow’s classes due to a busted water main, she delighted in the opportunity to decompress inside the safety of her apartment away from scrutiny.