eyes. “But I happen to be in love with her son, and he’s more than enough reason for me to have done everything in my power. Everything I’ve told you is the truth.” Almost. “I voluntarily slid down that cliff to try to save her, because I couldn’t bear the thought of explaining to my boyfriend that I let his mother die. And when she eventually fell, there was absolutely nothing either one of us could have done about it, which adds a whole new level of devastation to this already fucked-up situation.”
Dyck kept his gaze locked on mine the entire time I was speaking, and if he was surprised about my relationship with Hayle after knowing of my previous romantic connections to Tristin and Leo, he didn’t show it. When I was done, he nodded. “Understood.”
Standing, he slid a business card across the table and said, “I’d like for you to come in and make a formal statement about what happened with Ms. Crowder on Thanksgiving and any other information you managed to uncover about your mother’s murder.”
“What does it matter, now?”
“Because knowing the truth might have already given you closure, Miss Gale, but I still intend to execute proper closure in the eyes of the law. That’s how our justice system works.”
This time, I was the one to nod. “Understood.”
His mouth twitched a little. “Good. Take care of yourself, Miss Gale.”
“I intend to.”
Almost the moment Detective Dyck stepped out of the dining room, Tristin and Leo were there, hovering on either side of me. Leo pulled my chair back and then lifted me into his arms. “God, Thea. I’m in awe of you. You’re so fucking strong.”
I inhaled his scent as I pressed my face into his chest. “Were you two listening that whole time?”
“Of course. Would you expect any less?”
I half-laughed, half-choked. “No. Thank you for checking your text messages.”
Maybe it had been stupid of me to text the first person on my favorites list instead of calling for an actual rescue team. Okay, it had for sure been stupid of me. But I’d panicked and hadn’t been thinking clearly. Lily had been utterly defenseless, and at that moment, I’d been the only person who could help her.
Sure, I’d paused for a good thirty seconds, considering leaving her there, walking away, and never looking back. But one thought of Hayle was all it had taken to spur me into action.
Hayle. God. I couldn’t even imagine what he was going through right now.
I pulled away from Leo to look at him and Tristin. “Where is he?” They didn’t need the name to know exactly who I was talking about.
“Upstairs,” Tristin answered. “Another detective finished questioning him about fifteen minutes ago, and he went up to take a shower.”
“Is he…” What? Okay? Obviously, he wasn’t okay.
Leo kissed the top of my head. “Why don’t you go see him?”
“Are you sure that won’t make things worse?” I was so tangled up in everything that had happened with his mother, I worried that the mere sight of me might throw him into a tailspin.
“If it was me, I would want you there.”
I looked from Leo to Tristin, who nodded. “Same here.”
I swallowed past the ball of fear in my throat. I wanted to be there for Hayle more than anything, but I didn’t know if I could handle his rejection right now. But this wasn’t about me. This was about Hayle, and I would leave it up to him. If he didn’t want to see me, I would have to be okay with that.
I took a step, but Tristin grabbed my wrist, stopping me. “Remember. No guilt, okay?”
“I remember.”
On my way to Hayle, I made a quick detour to the kitchen to grab a couple of bags of Teddy Grahams. Outside of his door a minute later, I hesitated for a few seconds before opening it without knocking.
Hayle sat on the edge of his bed in only a pair of sweats, his head bowed, and I watched while a single drop of water dripped from his wet hair onto his bare chest and rolled down to his waistline. He didn’t look up at my entrance, so I closed the door behind me and walked slowly forward, dropping to my knees before him.
“I brought you something.”
His gaze met mine as I offered him a bag of Teddy Grahams, and one side of his mouth lifted slightly. He took the bag and immediately tore into it, popping a few in his mouth. “Thanks.”