Chapter 6 #2
“When I found Soren at the statue site that night, he’d been talking to someone,” he began, each word seeming to cost him effort. “He was angry that someone had seen him.”
“And the pin?”
“Soren must have lost it in the struggle. I found it later, when I went back to confront him about what I’d witnessed. By then, he’d already destroyed the statue, drunk and angry.”
Disgust turned in my stomach. “So, when he blackmailed you..."
“I agreed to take the fall for the statue on one condition,” Moses confirmed.
“That he leaves town as soon as possible. He was already set to attend college out of state. I made sure he kept to that plan. I didn’t want to be part of any issues or backfire in whatever was going on behind closed doors especially involving the likes of Soren Hayes. ”
“And the anonymous letters Hayes mentioned? The ‘threats of exposure’?”
Moses’s expression hardened. “Just reminders, over the years, that I was still watching, still holding that pin, still prepared to come forward if I had to. I had to make sure he understood the consequences.”
I sank onto a nearby crate, trying to process everything. “Why didn’t you tell me this yesterday? Or this morning at the falls?”
“Because it wasn’t just my secret to tell,” Moses replied, sitting beside me. “Whoever left obviously didn’t want to be known that night and has built a life for themselves away from the likes of Soren Hayes. I call that a win.”
“But is it?”
He nodded. “It’s the past. I need to move forward, and it seems everyone else is in this town apart from me.”
The weight of what Moses had carried all these years, not just the blame for vandalism, but the knowledge and the responsibility of protecting a mystery person, settled over me like a heavy blanket.
Whoever this was and whatever it involved was a secret for them and them alone and not for the likes of the town to know.
“So now what?” I asked, looking up at him. “You’re really going to tell everyone? Not just about the statue, but about Soren and the mystery person?”
“To an extent,” Moses said simply. “For everyone’s sake. He needs to take responsibility for his actions. I deserve a chance to be free of the burden I’ve carried for all this time.”
I reached for his hand without thinking, entwining our fingers. “You realize what you’re risking? Hayes won’t go down without a fight. He’ll try to discredit you, maybe even me by association.”
“I know,” Moses agreed, his grip tightening on mine. “That’s why I told you there might be fallout. It’s why I wanted you to be prepared.” He paused, searching my face. “You can still walk away, Rhett. Go back home, forget all this. I wouldn’t blame you.”
The offer was genuine; I could see it in his eyes, a final chance to protect myself from whatever storm might come. But the mere suggestion sparked something fierce within me.
“Not a chance,” I said firmly. “I left you to face this town alone once before. I won’t make that mistake again.”
Relief and something warmer flooded his expression. “Thank you.”
We sat in silence for a moment, hands still joined, the weight of the upcoming confrontation hanging between us. Despite the gravity of the situation, I felt oddly at peace. The truth, however ugly, was finally coming to light. And this time, Moses wouldn’t be standing alone when it did.
“So,” I said eventually, attempting to lighten the mood, “what does one wear to a public exposure of a two-decade-old scandal involving one of the town’s most prominent families?”
Moses’s laugh was startled but genuine, the sound warming something inside me. “Something resilient, I’d recommend. In case we need to make a quick getaway.”
“I was thinking more along the lines of righteously indignant but stylish,” I countered with a small smile. “Make a statement, you know.”
“Of course you were,” he rolled his eyes, but the gesture was fond rather than dismissive. “Always the architect, considering both form and function.”
“Speaking of form,” I said, my thumb tracing a small circle on the back of his hand, “you clean up nicely yourself. That henley brings out the gold in your eyes.”
A flush crept up his neck, and I was fascinated to see that even after all these years, I could still elicit that reaction from him. “Are you flirting with me, Callahan? Now, of all times?”
“Is it working?” I asked, only half-joking.
His eyes met mine, humor giving way to something more intense. “It always did.”
The air between us charged with possibility, with two decades of want and regret and hope. I leaned in slightly, drawn by that familiar gravity that had always existed between us, and was gratified to see him mirror the movement.
The storeroom door banged open, startling us apart.
“Sorry to interrupt whatever moment you two are having,” Bronwyn announced, not looking sorry in the slightest, “but it’s getting late. If you’re still planning your grand revelation, we should make our way to the award ceremony.”
Moses nodded, releasing my hand reluctantly and standing. “Right. Yes. Thank you.”
I followed suit, straightening my jacket and preparing mentally for what was to come. As we made our way through the bar and out onto the street, I noticed Moses had gone quiet, his expression distant.
“Second thoughts?” I asked softly as we walked side by side toward the school.
He shook his head. “No. Just... preparing myself. This isn’t going to be easy.”
“Few worthwhile things are,” I replied, resisting the urge to take his hand again. The streets of Gomillion were busy with reunion attendees, and while I no longer cared who knew about my sexuality, I understood Moses’s need to control his own narrative for a little while longer.
As we approached the school grounds, I could see a crowd already gathering on the lawn, word had spread, apparently, that something significant was about to happen.
I spotted Vanessa near the front, her expression tense but determined.
Mayor Hayes stood off to one side, engaged in what appeared to be a heated discussion with Principal Bushman.
“Quite the turnout,” I commented, my attempt at levity falling flat even to my own ears.
Moses took a deep breath, squaring his shoulders. “No turning back now.”
“No,” I agreed, finally giving in to the impulse and briefly squeezing his hand before letting go. “But whatever happens, we face it together.”
He glanced at me, gratitude and something deeper shining in his eyes. “Together,” he echoed.
As we made our way through the crowd toward the small, raised platform that had been set up for award reunion announcements, I felt a strange sense of déjà vu, as though I was a young eighteen-year-old again, facing the judgment of our peers.
But this time, we were armed with truth and the strength that comes from having built lives outside this small town’s confines.
This time, the outcome would be different. This time, we were ready.
The murmur of the crowd grew louder as Moses took his place at the center of the platform, me just a step behind him. In that moment, watching him prepare to finally unburden himself of the secret he’d carried for twenty years, I felt a surge of pride so intense it nearly took my breath away.
Whatever happened next, whatever storms we might have to weather, I knew with absolute certainty that I was exactly where I needed to be, standing beside the man I had never truly stopped loving, ready to face the past so we could finally, maybe, have a future.