Harlow
Present Day
The seagulls circle like vultures above the choppy sea. Everything is gray—the water, the birds, the foreboding clouds.
Crack! A door slams, making me jump. I look out the windows on the other side of the room, the ones overlooking the sprawling gated gardens out front, and see the gate has come unlocked, wind thrashing it against the frame.
A wisp of fog creeps through the gate like a ghost and I shudder. I debate leaving this place, hiding out in Nashville or Los Angeles instead, but this house has a hold on me. A part of my soul. A part of her. Even though she’s no longer here. Her body, at least.
I shudder, remembering that night. The thunder rumbling in the distance. Her face in front of mine. And then her arms. Aiming for me.
Her expression changed from sour to pleading. The ground started to move beneath me. The sound of blood whooshed in my ears.
You take things too far! So impulsive. So reckless. I imagine you reprimanding me.
But I promise I didn’t mean to hurt her.