Chapter 7
AMELIA
The beach house sat against the beach like a blissful paradise. I closed my eyes and embraced the warmth of the ocean breeze, allowing it to fall into me.
Salty air filled my lungs, a taste of freedom I hadn't realized I craved. The rhythmic crash of waves was a soothing lullaby, washing away the anxieties of the world, leaving only the gentle pulse of the ocean and the quiet whisper of the wind.
The memory of my time in the dark cage in Blake’s basement was still there, but it was like a faint fog in the cervices of my mind, and I coddled the momentary distraction as if it were delicate glass.
Good things always had a way of shattering, and I hoped that this trip wouldn’t end up like the last one. Lost in the Colorado wilderness with Caiden. And the aftermath.
The memory returned; the night I begged him to come over, his warm, comforting presence wrapping around me like a soft blanket, the way I melted into him, his embrace as smooth as silk.
He left, and a chilling emptiness filled the space where his warmth had been, leaving me alone and yearning.
We spilled out of the SUV. Alex whistled low, stretching his arms overhead. “Not bad,” he said. “Hope it doesn’t collapse with us inside.”
Sabrina didn’t even look back. She yanked the trunk open, her ponytail bouncing with every step. She grabbed the cooler and the pink rolling suitcase and shoved them into Sydney’s waiting arms.
“Priorities, people,” Sabrina fired over her shoulder. “I want my feet in the water before these men ruin it with their stench.”
Sydney snorted, nearly tripping over the suitcase. “You’re acting like we’re racing—”
“Aren’t we?” I said, but my voice already sounded far away. Like it belonged to someone else.
My skin crawled with memory. Wind, rapid and biting, slapping my face in Colorado. The endless howling. First the river, then the wilderness, then Blake’s laughter, echoing. The whiplash of trauma and relief, never quite separating in my mind.
But I forced my feet toward the porch steps, forced a smile into place. Because this was what it was supposed to be. A vacation. Beach air and new beginnings, not the lingering taste of blood.
Sabrina dropped the last of her gear at the door and planted both hands on my back. “Beach or bust, Amelia. Come on.” Her voice, all mock-command.
“Yeah, come on,” Sydney said, her laughter was warm. “Don’t let your grandma tendencies slow us down.”
I rolled my eyes for effect, letting them drag me forward. Past the battered porch swing and through the thin beach grass, the sand cool and gritty between my toes even through my shoes.
The ocean yawned ahead of us. A wall of pale green water, foaming at the edges, the crash and hiss of the tide grinding up the shore.
For a moment, I could almost feel okay. Just a girl with friends, not a survivor. Not a ghost.
Sabrina flung her arms wide, spinning in a tight circle. “God, look at it,” she breathed, voice gone reverent. “Why would anyone ever leave a place like this?”
Sydney set the cooler down with a dramatic flourish and shot Sabrina a glare. “Because winter exists, and so do hurricanes.”
I made myself laugh. “And creepy men with binoculars?”
They both laughed at that, too. The shared sound splintered the static in my skull, just for a second.
Sabrina nudged my arm. “Can we just stand here a minute? Before the guys show up and start talking about football or meat or whatever weird shit they do?”
Sydney flopped into the sand, cross-legged, purple-painted toenails flashing. “Please. I’m serious, I need like ten minutes of this. No boys allowed.”
I let myself take it in. The way the waves knifed up the rocks at the far edge, the dark smudges of seaweed tangling at the shoreline, the salt sting burning my lips. Even the sun felt raw, like it was trying too hard to warm us.
But the inside of me was miles away. Stuck in the dark, in the wet and the cold. Stuck somewhere I’d never fully leave.
I tried to hide it, though. Didn’t want to ruin the moment.
“This beats any splash pad,” I said, deadpan, because I remembered Sabrina’s horror story about Shane dragging her to one last summer.
Sydney grinned. “Only thing missing are those tiny shrimp that bite your ankles.”
“Better than bears,” Sabrina countered, glancing at me with that sideways concern she always tried to hide. As if she knew where my head went on days like this.
Maybe she did.
The wind picked up, tangling my hair into my mouth. I yanked it back, tasting salt and something like rust.
Everything should have been perfect. Everything almost was.
But the horizon clawed at my insides. I could feel the old panic, just under my skin. The jittery, broken pulse, the certainty that the world would crumble if I didn’t brace myself for impact.
I wished I could tell them. I wished I could feel what they did. Instead, I played my part.
Sabrina sucked in a deep breath, eyes shining. “I’d stay out here forever if I could.”
Sydney nudged her. “You’d miss your morning lattes in like two hours.”
“Please,” Sabrina shot back. “I could quit coffee for this.”
I let their voices blur together, the laughter loud and bright, a shield against what waited inside. I pretended it was enough. That I could stay in this moment, not get dragged under by everything that came before.
Eventually, Sabrina checked her phone and frowned. “We should head back up. If I don’t claim the best bedroom now, I’ll lose it to Shane.”
Sydney groaned. “Right, before Mr. Sleeps With a White Noise Machine takes over.”
We trudged back, sand clinging to my legs. The house looked closer now, its roofline jagged against the sky. I tried not to think of cages, of basements, of walls that never let in enough light.
Inside, it was chaos. Shane and Caiden had dumped the bags all over the main room. Duffels, pillows, and a box of cheap beer. Caiden stood with his back to the door, hands braced on the kitchen counter, muscles tense under a faded gray shirt.
Shane spotted us first, waving a beer in the air. “Ladies! Come help us pick rooms?”
There was a blur of shuffling, Sydney racing Sabrina up the stairs, the sounds of doors opening and closing, footsteps pounding on wood. But I just stood there, half in shadow, watching the three men fill the space.
Alex turned toward me. Smiled, easy and warm. “Hey, you survive the girl talk?”
I nodded, smiling. “We talked about you the whole time.”
He laughed, stepping closer.
But it didn’t matter. Not really. Because I felt Caiden’s gaze before I saw it. Like claws scraping down my spine, and impossible to ignore.
He didn’t speak. Didn’t move. But his eyes found me and held me, relentless.
Alex kept chatting, some story about a college beach trip gone wrong, his voice filling the room, light and smooth. The opposite of everything that lived inside me.
But all I could feel was Caiden, dark and silent, that gravity. Pulling, pulling, like the tide. I hated how easily I could sense him, how even trying to look away was a losing battle.
Shane came over and put an arm around my shoulders. “You good, Amelia? Need a tour?”
I blinked the world back into focus and forced the tension out of my shoulders. “I’m fine. Just…taking it all in.”
Caiden’s brows pinched. His knuckles whitened on the counter.
For a second, I thought he’d say something. Something cruel, or worse. But he didn’t.
Instead, Sydney barreled back into the kitchen, Sabrina on her heels. “Let’s hit the water before it’s dark!” she yelled.
Instant energy. Everyone grabbed towels, clattering past me to the back deck. The air was thick with voices, arms brushing, bodies too close.
Alex came up behind me. “You ready?”
I nodded, letting him lead me out. But my heart hammered for a different reason.
From the corner of my eye, Caiden watched, jaw tight, eyes burning with that same old violence. Like he’d never learned how to look at me without wanting to destroy something.
The pull between us was a wound that never healed, no matter how far I tried to run.
I ignored it. Or tried to.
I followed Alex through the open door, the wind off the ocean immediately biting at my skin. I heard the others already heading down the steps. I tried to keep my eyes on the back of Alex’s head, let him be the light. Let him distract me from the storm always circling.
We walked down the wooden stairs, the group tumbling together, Shane already making jokes about who would be first in the water. Sabrina grabbed Sydney’s hand and yanked her forward, both of them shrieking at the cold bite of the surf.
I hesitated at the edge, toes digging into the sand. Alex reached for my hand again and squeezed. “You gonna be brave?” he teased, blue eyes bright.
For one heartbeat, I managed to smile. “Maybe I’ll just shove you in instead.”
He grinned, delight in his face. “You wound me.”
A flash of movement. The solid wall of muscle and need that was Caiden, just behind us. Close enough that I could feel the heat from his skin, even as his scowl cut into the air. He didn’t say a word.
He didn’t have to.
Every nerve in my body was singing with how much I didn’t want to care, how much I still did.
But I forced myself forward, let Alex pull me into the shallows. The water was freezing, shocking my ankles, making me gasp in spite of myself.
He laughed, steady and easy, like nothing in the world could touch him. “Come on, it’s perfect.”
Behind me, Sabrina yelled that she was already regretting her life choices.
Sydney was splashing Shane, both of them acting like five-year-olds.
But every cell in me was on fire with the tension. The dark, the ache, the way the ocean pulled at my feet even as I tried to steady myself.
Alex kept close. The way he looked at me was simple, uncomplicated affection.
I tried to let myself believe it could be that easy. That the only thing I needed was someone who was gentle and dependable. That desire didn’t have to hurt.
The water swirled and seethed around my toes, white foam licking at my calves. Alex tugged me deeper, until the hem of my shorts was soaked and my skin stung with cold.