Total pages in book: 171
Estimated words: 164459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 822(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 822(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
The Dark Side was what they called it, and when I arrived, I figured out why. I’d never been there before. I’d only heard about the dirty things that happened there.
The hangout spot where everyone chugged down beer and made out until their faces turned red, was right beneath a cliff.
The cliff.
How did I not know this?
Goosebumps ran up my arms and spine as Trace parked a few yards away.
Instantly, my stomach coiled in knots and I froze in the backseat. I had been excited to live a little with my best friend, but that feeling quickly evaporated as I stared at the rocky ledge above.
Ecstatic, Kylie hopped out of the passenger seat, rushing around to the driver’s side to tug Trace out of the car.
He glued himself to her once his feet were on the ground, grinning as he bent down to steal a swift kiss. Kylie giggled, then turned to swing my door open.
“Come on, Jen! The party is waiting for us, baby love! Gotta hurry before everyone drinks all the free beer and we’re forced to drink our own first.” Kylie’s grin was broad as she peered at me, but when she caught sight of my pale face and horror-struck eyes, her smile faded, her entire attitude changing from animated to serious.
“Ohmygod.” Her words came out rushed as she slid across the leather bench to get beside me. “Jen, what’s wrong?”
“It’s um…” I breathed as evenly as possible, and then swallowed hard to rid my throat of the unwanted thickness. I pointed towards the windshield, avoiding having to look at the cliff. “We’re right under the cliff.”
She frowned at first, looking back at it. When she realized what I was getting at, she sat up straight, her hazel eyes growing wide.
“Oh, shit. Jen, I completely forgot. Shit,” she hissed. Her face dropped as she sighed and sat back. “You know we can totally blow this off. We can have our own fun somewhere else,” she offered.
“No! It’s okay.” I shook my head, holding my hands up. I refused to be the spoiler of her night. I was eighteen years old. It was time to grow up. I had to accept some things about my past, the things that tormented me in all the worst ways. The cause of so many nightmares and waking up in cold sweat. “Can I just have a few minutes? I’ll meet you out there.”
“Yeah, yeah! Sure.” She put on a supportive smile, patting the top of my hand. “Come out when you’re ready. We’ll be by the keg near the bonfire. Text me if you need me to come back.”
I nodded, and with another sweet smile, Kylie climbed out of the car, shutting the door behind her and walking away with her arm linked through Trace’s.
“What was that about?” he asked.
“She just needs a minute. It’s a girly thing. You wouldn’t understand.”
My lips curved when she said that. Kylie always knew how to cover up for me. She’d gotten me out of so many tight places with my parents and even with her own.
She was a pro at protecting the truth, which was why I trusted her with a secret I’d never shared with anyone but her. The only people that knew about my issues were Kylie and Sue, our housekeeper…and of course, Mom and Dad.
When they were long gone, I pushed the door open again and stepped out, shutting it behind me, and tried to collect a less-frazzled breath. I tugged on the border of my blue dress, ridding it of the wrinkles that had formed during our fifteen-minute ride to the lake.
“Okay, Jenny. Get it together,” I huffed, shutting my eyes as I walked back and forth beside the black Sahara Jeep.
When I opened my eyes, pointing my gaze up towards the very top of the cliff that was a straight dive into the rocky bottom of the lake, I could see why they called it The Dark Side.
It was pitch black on the top of that cliff, not even the stars twinkled. The moon was perched on the opposite side of the velvety midnight sky, far away from the jagged, nightmarish edge.
Questions about Mitchell hit me like a tidal wave, and I froze with the wind, practically breathless. I couldn’t imagine how it happened. What did he do before he jumped off? Did he attempt to dive or did he tuck his legs and drop in? Was he really trying to kill himself, or was it an accident that led to his death?
That last question is what haunted me most… and then the memories arrived.
“I hate living here, Jenny. I don’t know how much longer I can take this.”
I was confused, watching Mitchell pace my bedroom. “What do you mean?”
I was lost. I was only eight years old, but Mitchell talked about everything with me, even the big people stuff that was way ahead of my time.