LEVI:
Kookie’s words strike multiple nerves at once. They break me, and I hate the way they do, but I cannot do anything. This is the version of her I made, because sixteen-year-old Kookie would never have said anything that would hurt me, even in the littlest way. All she had to give me was love, and I shattered her, exposing her early to the cruelty of life instead of shielding her from it.
It had been hours since she said those words to me, but they rang in my ears, fresh as dawn. Donald knocks at my door, drawing me back to reality. I groan, sitting up.
“What do you want?” I ask, then he opens the door, walking in, giving off a bow.
“Leila Shade, Elder Patrick’s daughter is here,” he says, and my brows furrow slightly.
I cannot remember having a deal with them to bring her into th
