Chapter 46
FORTY-SIX
SAVANNAH
I grind my teeth to ward off the emotions filling me and look down at the sea of papers. Marcy Thorn did one hell of a job uncovering this shit about my father, and it seems things are worse than even I knew.
He’s a sick, twisted, sadistic bastard who needs to be stopped, and I wish like hell I could just go ahead and report him, but I know it would be pointless. All he would do is pull strings to make it go away, then make my life even more hellish.
But I can’t just do nothing. I can’t just let him roam free while this shit is what happens when he’s allowed to do as he pleases.
I think I need to talk to Logan. I need to know what it is that he’s been working on for the last couple of years, because I’m starting to think he knows exactly how bad it is, and he’s trying to save all those people from—I shake my head and force myself to swallow the bile crawling up my throat.
I can’t even think the words aloud. It’s too bad, too sick, too goddamn horrific. I always thought his threats were baseless, but it turns out he was telling the truth all along. He really can and would sell me to one of his fucking friends.
All these years, I thought it was just something he said to make me fall in line… but now I know different.
A knock on the door makes me jump, and a tremor goes through me. Oh fuck. Oh fuck, is that him? Has he figured out what happened to the guy he sent? Does he know I’m trying to take him down?
Heart in my throat, I start shoving all of the papers back inside the folder, not caring if it’s messy or out of order, I just need them out of sight.
“Sav? It’s me,” Harley calls through the door. I sag in relief, before the tension snaps right back into place.
What the hell is he doing here, and how does he even know which dorm is mine?
I throw the folder on the kitchen island and head to the door, my body jittery with nerves.
My hand is shaking as I reach out to open the door, and my entire body vibrates as I come face to face with Harley.
His hair is even messier than usual, his clothes rumpled, and his eyes red and tired.
“You look like shit,” I blurt and then cringe away from him. I’m really not feeling into being punished right now, but where I was expecting anger, he just smirks and steps past me into my dorm.
“And you, look beautiful,” he murmurs.
I frown as he wanders further into my space, belatedly realizing I didn’t invite him in, and I still don’t know why he’s here.
“What are you doing here?”
He shrugs, his eyes wandering around the room.
“It’s weird that I’ve never been here. All these years of…
whatever we were, I never came into your space.
Just like you never came into mine. I always thought that if we kept things neutral, it would make things easier.
Little did I know just how wrong I was.” He turns to face me, a soft smile on his face.
“I came because we need to talk. Really talk, about everything.”
Fuck.
I knew this was coming, I just hoped I’d have a little longer to get myself together before I finally had to tell him the truth. I don’t know what his reaction will be, and that’s why I’ve been so scared of opening up to him, even when I know he knows there’s more.
I gesture toward the couch, and he heads over to it, only for his feet to freeze in place as he passes the kitchen island. His fingers trace over the folder sitting there. More specifically, over the name engraved on the folder.
His mom.
“When did she give you this?” he whispers, and shock reverberates through me at his assumption.
“How do you know I didn’t steal it, like the last time?”
He looks at me over his shoulder, a sad smile on his face. “Because now I know who you really are, and I don’t believe you would have stolen it. Not this time.”
I swallow the lump in my throat and incline my head toward the folder. “Just open it. In there is everything you want to know.”
I wait in silence for him to open it and start reading what really happened and what’s been going on, but his eyes don’t leave mine. Something in his expression is unsettling, like he’s only moments away from either losing his shit or breaking down.
“I don’t want to read it, Savannah.”
“Why not?” I demand, not understanding what the hell he’s doing.
“Because for once, I need to hear your side of things from you. No assumptions, no guesses, no words written by someone who wasn’t involved. I need your version of events, and then I’m gonna help you figure out how to help yourself.”
“Yeah? You’re not gonna swoop in and fix all my problems for me?”
He grins at me. That boyish grin I miss so much, the one I haven’t seen directed my way in four years.
“We both know you don’t want me to save you, but maybe I can lend a helping hand to get you there.
And if you don’t want me anywhere near you or whatever it is you’re planning, then just say the word, and I’ll be quietly cheering you on from the sidelines. ”
My jaw tightens. How the hell can he flip a switch so easily? For years, he’s hated me, tormented me. Hell, we’ve barely spoken a word in over a year, and now he thinks he can just swoop in and help me with all of my problems? After everything that’s happened between us?
I think the fuck not.
Still, it is about time he finally knows the truth.
Taking a steadying breath, I incline my head toward the sofa. “I think we’d better sit down.”