Reclaimed Hearts: A second chance, forced proximity romance

Covington’s Continuum

“What’s that?” I asked, not bothering to reach for the envelope just yet.

My brain needed time to process a whole long list of things.

First, having the last clue lead to Reid. He was waiting for me. He held the envelope with my name on it. A clue. Or… maybe not a clue? The one from the lighthouse said my last clue would come soon, and wasn’t that what the text message was?

So if the message was the last clue, then what was Reid holding? And why did he have it?

It was also suspicious that I figured it out so quickly. Whoever sent it wanted me to know right away. There was a timeline for this clue, especially since Reid was waiting for me, like he knew I would be coming as fast as I did.

Second, the fact that I would be leaving the Bennett house in another day, therefore basically leaving Reid.

Lastly, Reid himself. Us. Our relationship. That was an entirely new list on its own, one I couldn’t dive into yet, because what?

“Mars…” he said softly. I looked up at him, realizing my gaze had been on his hand for the past few minutes as my brain went haywire. “Open it.”

He held the envelope out to me. I lifted my shaky hand and took it, but otherwise didn’t move.

“It’s you?” I said, this time as more of a question than a statement. The last clue led to him, but… was it always him? “You were behind all of this?”

Panic began to rise, bubbling in my stomach, my heart fluttering as my mind spiraled.

His brows furrowed, a little wrinkle forming between them, and he frowned, like he was confused. But after a second, his eyes widened with realization.

“No! Oh my God, Marlowe, no! I promise, I had nothing to do with all of this. Someone called earlier, during the party. Told me there would be something at the door soon and to make sure you got it, but not to give it to you until you came to me. It was all very… secretive? Odd? I didn’t really get it, but then sure enough, an envelope was at the door with my name on it. This,” he gestured to the one in my hand now, “was inside of it. The person on the phone said you would get your clue tonight, so I figured if you didn’t get it while at the party, it would be now.”

He shook his head like he was also trying to figure it all out. Like none of it made sense to him, but he did the best he could with what he was given.

Honestly, I got it. I had no idea what to do with these clues either. I didn’t know what they meant, where they led, or why I was given them in the first place.

I flinched when a hand landed on my arm. Reid cupped his hand under my elbow and led me to the chair in the corner, sitting in the one next to me, leaning forward so we weren’t that far apart.

“I’m pretty sure you should open it tonight, Mars. It seems like something that needs immediate attention.”

I nodded, still unable to process everything going on. Sliding my finger under the flap, I plucked out the piece of paper and immediately recognized the handwriting.

All the other clues had been typed. All but this one.

This note was in Eleanor Covington’s handwriting. Everyone on the island could recognize it, if they looked around hard enough. The Covington Cove Country Club signage was in her handwriting. Charlotte’s Haven Beach’s sign was as well, as she was the one to name it decades ago.

Eleanor Covington was wound into the soul of this island.

The way she capitalized all of her R’s, no matter if it was cursive or print, was a telltale sign. Also the way she never dotted an I, but sometimes double crossed her t’s, like she did once and forgot, so she went back over the line again. She printed her b’s, never the correct cursive, and there was a slight slant to all her letters.

Most of all, it looked like it was a font made on a computer. The writing was so perfectly written, it almost didn’t look like handwriting at all, except for those few human aspects.

“Eleanor wrote this. She actually wrote this for me,” I whispered, still not even reading the words, just staring at the writing.

“How incredibly special, Mars,” Reid said just as quietly. “You really meant something to her.”

As much as that comment should have made me insanely happy, it actually did the opposite. My heart sank to the floor and a wave of sadness washed over me.

“I never knew. I mean, I enjoyed her company too, and we always had good conversations while at the mansion, but I never knew I meant this much to her.”

I thought back to the day at the cafe, when I found out she had died. How incredibly gutted I had been. How sad.

Eleanor was just as special to me as I was to her. I just didn’t realize it while it was happening.

“Marlowe… read it,” Reid said, nudging my knee with the back of his hand.

It took a moment for my eyes to adjust again, having zoned out for a while.

“In order to claim your prize, you need to find the connection. Figure out what all your clues have in common. Then, come tell me.”

I gasped, tears welling up.

“Come tell me? How… that doesn’t even make… oh goodness. She was supposed to be alive for this, Reid. For all of it—she was supposed to be alive.”

Reid scrunched his face. “Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe her death was the catalyst. Maybe it triggered into starting because of her death.”

That… that made a lot of sense, too. Which was why I kept Reid around—he was able to talk sense into me and understand situations I tended to spiral into.

“So, what do you think your clues have in common?” he asked a minute later.

I frowned. “Well, there was the playroom. The lifeguard tower. The candy store. And… you,” I paused, staring up at him. “What are the similarities between all of those?”

He just held my gaze, waiting for me to say more instead of interjecting. This time, I wished he would chime in.

“I have no idea, Reid. The only thing I can think of is how Eleanor wants me to tell her. Which means… I probably need to end up at the mansion.”

Or her gravesite, I thought. She was buried in the Covington family cemetery, within the Covington estate’s property at the south-east corner of the island. Every Covington had the right to be buried there, regardless if they lived on or off the island.

“Tonight?” Reid questioned, a hint of worry in his tone.

I shook my head. “No, not tonight. Not until I can figure out what all the clues have in common. Which… might be a while.”

Having to find a location of a clue was one thing. Finding the connection between those locations? Seemed near impossible.

“Think it can wait a few days? There’s only two more days until my parents come back…”

Reid took the paper and envelope from my hands and laid them on the table next to us. Then he slipped my hand into his and gave it a gentle pull. I stood, and he drew me toward him.

He leaned against the back of the plush armchair and settled me on his lap. His fingers played with the charms on my necklace. “Whatever this prize is, it’ll be good for you, Marlowe. I can feel it. I won’t say your life is about to change, because that would be cliche. Eleanor wouldn’t do something this big without it having some sort of meaning behind it. She chose you, Mars. You’re the special one. Whatever she planned will be amazing. Because it’s for you.”

He reached up and slid his palm over my cheek, wrapping his hand around my jaw and brushing the side of my face with his thumb. “Eleanor saw what we all see in you, Mars. An incredible, extraordinary, wonderful person who we love deeply.

And with that, he pulled me down, meeting my lips with his, and kissing me until I was left breathless.