Die For Me (The Consumed Series Book 2)

Emily

Hana sighed heavily as we walked down the tree-lined street through the neighborhood. The sun shone down on us brightly, and I noticed our feet walking lazily in sync. The late April afternoon was perfect, sixty-three degrees with no clouds in sight. The birds were chirping overhead, and I realized how different our hometown was from the city. There were no assholes bumping into us on the sidewalk and you could walk down the street without having to step around trash. I looked over at Hana as she smiled down at the sidewalk in front of us; I hadn’t seen her so carefree in such a long time. Her long, blonde, wavy hair was drying in the sunshine as she flipped it over her shoulder to look at me.

“I have a lot to tell you,” she said, a hint of a smile on her face.

I let out a laugh. “Um, no shit,” I scoffed. “First, I need to know: Were you really with Jack this whole time? And what the fuck did Michael do to you, because I swear to God I will fight him.”

Hana laughed and shook her head. I couldn’t believe how nonchalant she was being about this.

“Um…Jack and I…it’s complicated. Everything I told you before, at that hotel in Jersey, was true. But…he’s so different now. And I am…obsessed with him.” She stopped walking as she spoke, her hands in her zip-up hoodie pockets.

My heart sunk to the concrete under my shoes. “Hana,” I scolded, shaking my head at her. “He took you. He…did some unimaginable things to you. Why in the hell are you obsessed with him?” I couldn’t understand how she could go from terrified of him to absolutely in love with him.

She shook her head back at me, chewing the sides of her cheek. “I don’t expect you to understand, Em. I just really want you back in my life, and if you want answers, I’m gonna give them to you whether you like them or not.”

I started to tear up. I didn’t know if I could ignore their past. “And what about Michael? Did he fucking kidnap you too?”

Hana sighed heavily. “Yes. He was desperate. And then I became desperate too,” she started, averting her eyes.

“Please explain, Hana,” I begged.

“Remember, Em. Don’t ask questions you don’t want to know the answers to.” She eyed me, her eyes full of hesitation.

I nodded, bracing myself for all of the horrifying details I’d surely be hearing.

“And please know…I know none of this makes sense. I know how this all sounds. If I were in your shoes, I’d be just as concerned as you are. I know that. But listen to all of this knowing that I know all of this, and yet I can’t walk away from these two. Even if I could, I would never leave either of them.”

Her words came out so quickly that they could barely sink in before she spoke again. Her hands were shaking as she spoke.

“Michael brought me here with the intention of keeping me here. And then I got the chance to talk to you and Jack, and I knew what I had to do. Neither of them would ever let me make my own decisions if I didn’t threaten them with this,” she started.

I shook my head at her again, and my brows pulled together. “Threaten them with what?”

She surveyed my face before answering. “I threatened to take my life. That’s the only way I was going to get out of any of this. And then I realized that they were capable of sharing me. I guess I didn’t even get to that part.” She laughed, shaking her head. “Before I threatened them, I had sex with them. At the same time. And it was fucking incredible, Emily. I knew that I needed both of them. So I told them: You either share me, or you don’t get me at all.”

I was speechless. Was this another one of her ploys to convince me that everything was okay, but things really weren’t?

“This is the truth, Emily. I’m not gonna lie to you anymore,” she explained, somehow reading my mind.

A huge, involuntary smile washed over my face. “Hana. This is fucking nuts.” My immediate thought shot out of my mouth before I could stop it.

Hana frowned and started to walk away. “I know that, Emily. I told you it didn’t make any sense. But this is my life now.” She shrugged, eyeing me from over her shoulder as I struggled to catch up with her.

“Hey, Han.” I grabbed her arm to stop her from walking.

She turned to me with tears in her eyes. “My life is an absolute mess, Emily. It’s fucking chaotic, but I’m somehow happier than I’ve been in a long time,” she explained, talking with her hands.

I nodded, taking her hand. I didn’t understand any of this; I didn’t understand why she wanted to be with these men that dominated her, that took away her free will, that threatened her life. I was afraid to question it any more, though, because I didn’t want another fight. I didn’t want to hear anymore but I didn’t want to lose her again.

“I’m your family, Hana. I won’t judge you. I just need to know that you’ll be okay.”

She nodded, squeezing my hand with hers. “As okay as I’ll ever be.”