CROAK, SITTING on the sideline of the trees when two people walking past again, flashlights in hand.

“Waverly?” he calls, and then the light flashes my way and he comes rushing over. “There you are. I couldn’t find you! What happened?”

My chest aches as I look up at him. “I don’t . . . you drugged me.”

He looks shocked. “What?”

“You drugged me. You said I could trust you and you drugged me . . .” My voice is frantic. Dax kneels down, and Yates stands behind him, holding the flashlight. “Honey, I didn’t drug you. Tell me what you remember?”

“Bobbie gave me a drink, and then, I don’t remember what happened. I just know I feel awful and sick, and I don’t know how I got out. It’s all a blur.”

Dax looks behind him to Yates. “Search her.”

Wait.

No.

“No, she didn’t do it,” I cry.

“Hey, it’s okay, it’s okay. Let’s get you home.”

He helps me to my feet and as we walk, I glance back at the cabin where Mykel just made me feel so damned safe. He looked out for me when nobody else wanted to. My heart thuds as we walk farther and farther away from it.

Maybe I’m not cut out for this.

Maybe, just maybe, I’m not strong enough after all.

Dax gets me back to the cabin and we walk inside. I can’t see anyone else, including Bobbie and Yates. Panic grips my chest and I worry that she’s going to get hurt. I stop walking and when Dax turns to face me, I decide to test if I truly do mean anything to him. I ask him, “Please don’t get Bobbie into trouble. I’ve been right where she is. You said you’re here to help her. Please don’t punish her for that.”

He studies me, and something in his gaze changes when he looks at me. “I won’t punish her.”

With that, he walks towards my room and I follow, my head throbbing with pain. I need to lie down, and I need to do it immediately. If I don’t, I’m likely going to pass out where I stand and that won’t be pretty. I’m also covered in dirt; Briella wanted me to shower but she knew if I did, that it would look odd, so I had to go back out in my dirty clothes.

She’s a great friend, and I’m super grateful to her for being there for me.

“I’ll get you a fresh towel. Would you like anything else?” Dax asks me.

I turn to face him, and I meet his eyes. “Yeah, I would like something else.”

My mind is spinning so bad I feel like I’m going to pass out, so I’m word vomiting far more than I should be, and I have no doubt that when I wake in the morning, I’m going to regret every single word that’s about to come out of my mouth.

“What can I get you?”

“You can’t get me anything, but you can tell me . . . who are you, Dax? Who are you really?”

He stares at me, zero expression on his face. I know I have to follow through with what I’ve said even though I’m internally kicking myself, because my question likely sounds incredibly odd.

“I’m nobody, Waverly.”

Oh.

Shit.

I didn’t expect that.

I honestly didn’t.

I blink and wonder if I heard that right.

He’s nobody?

No.

Everybody is somebody.

Everybody.

But in that moment, something so clear washes into my mind. A tactic I didn’t think about earlier. I’m playing the innocent, broken girl. But what I should be really playing on is the fact that he clearly cares about me, and because of that, I should be able to get into the very depths of his soul. What if I can get him to just tell me everything I need to know? To trust me? To confide in me?

It’s tricky, because it means I have to do things I really, really don’t want to do, but it could also be a quicker way to get the hell out of here.

“I feel like you’re standing in front of me and telling me all these things, yet I don’t really know you. Not a single thing about you. I don’t know why you’d help random girls on a street. I don’t know why your gaze is so closed off I can’t see behind it. I don’t know why you’re who you are.”

He flinches as if he’s taken back by my questions. Like he never expected I’d just lunge forward like that. “Maybe one day I’ll let you in on everything I am, but the problem with unleashing the truth is that you won’t like what’s put in front of you.”

“Maybe I’ll surprise you, Dax,” I say, carefully. “Maybe you’re not the only one filled with darkness.”

Cheering on the inside at my epic little finishing line, I turn and walk off. I want him to trust me, and I know that won’t happen overnight, but if it gets us to the end result quicker then I’ll do what I have to do.

I reach the bathroom and lean in to turn on the shower. I take my top off and attempt to take off my jeans but trip when my foot gets stuck in them. I’m still way too out of it to coordinate this properly, and I am just realizing how much so when my body slams against the cold tiled floor. I cry out in pain because damn, a grown adult falling down is something else entirely. We don’t bounce back up like we did when we were kids.

God.

Ouch.

“Waverly!”

Suddenly, Dax is there, leaning down, his hands taking my body and lifting me up like I weigh nothing. When he gets me to my feet, he glances down. My bare breasts are quite literally squishing against his chest. His eyes meet mine, and oh lord, I can see the desire there. The epic desire. He wants me, and it’s written all over his face.

My body goes into panic mode, and I start panting.

I’m pressed against his body, half-naked, and if this

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