Chapter 46

The drive across town was a blur of rain-streaked glass and pounding thoughts. My grip on the steering wheel was white-knuckled, my chest aching with the weight of fear. A million questions were going through my mind the whole time I was driving: why would he just disappear without even telling me where he was? I sit here hoping to make him feel stressed, or does he want me to run after him so he can feel important?

While driving through town, I searched for any sign of his car. I immediately thought of going to search for Tyson. What if he went there to confront him, and it ended up in a physical fight? I changed my course of direction and drove straight to Tyson's apartment.

My heart was in my throat by the time I arrived at the apartment building. Breathing heavily, I ascended the stairs two at a time, my sneakers slipping on the wet steps. I pounded my fist firmly as soon as I got to his door.

“Dan?” My voice cracked, too loud in the narrow hall. “Dan, are you in there?” The lock clicked, the door creaked open. Tyson peeked out, and I rolled my eyes, feeling disappointed to see his face. His eyes widened slightly at the sight of me, then narrowed into something unreadable. He leaned casually against the doorframe, but there was tension in his jaw. “Emerald.” I pushed past him and walked inside and stood just next to the door, close enough to push him and make an exit if I had to.

I forced myself to stand tall even though I was annoyed by his presence. “Where is he? Is he here?” Tyson’s smirk deepened, cruel in its ease. “Not here.” He stepped back, letting me see the empty living room behind him. “But I’m glad you came.”

The disappointment engulfed me when I realised I had come all this way for nothing, only putting myself in danger. Turning sharply toward him, I spat out, “I don’t know where he is, and I don’t care what you think you know. But hear me clearly, Tyson, I will no longer do the DNA test. I told Dan the truth about what happened.” The smirk vanished from his face.

His expression hardened, darkened, his fists curling at his sides. He rose from the chair in one sharp motion, his height looming, his energy suddenly threatening. “You think you can just walk away from this?” His voice was low, dangerous. “You don’t get to decide what to do about this, Emerald.”He charged forward.

Instinct overrode fear. My knee bent, my leg shot up, and I kicked him square in the chest. The moment my foot connected, heat exploded through me, fire erupted, raw and untamed, engulfing his shirt.

Tyson stumbled back with a shout, clutching at the flames that licked across his chest. His scream tore through the apartment, jagged and furious, as the smell of burning fabric and flesh filled the air.

I froze, horror mixing with the adrenaline tearing through me. A gasp escaped my throat. I didn't mean to, but he deserved it. The fire still burned in my palms as Tyson writhed, and the reality of what I’d done crashed into me like a tidal wave.

My scream still echoed in my ears as I bolted out of Tyson’s apartment, the acrid scent of smoke clinging to me like guilt. My feet pounded down the stairwell, slippery on the concrete steps. I didn’t look back. I couldn’t. If I stayed another second, I wasn’t sure if I’d finish what I’d started—or if he’d rise and end me first.

The night air hit me hard when I burst outside, cool and damp, stinging against my sweat-soaked skin. My breaths came in jagged gasps, each one burning through my lungs. I stumbled toward my car, fumbling with the keys, my hands trembling so badly I nearly dropped them.

“Keep moving,” I muttered to myself, sliding into the driver’s seat. “Don’t stop, don’t think. Just find him.”

The engine roared to life, but my thoughts roared louder. What if Dan had found out already? What if Tyson had gotten to him before me? What if Dan was out there drowning his rage in someone else’s arms?

My knuckles whitened around the steering wheel as I drove aimlessly, every street and corner reminding me of him. I searched the sidewalks, the cafes, the late-night diners he sometimes disappeared to when he needed space. Nothing.

And then, just as the despair was threatening to crush me, I saw it.

Dan’s car.

It was parked crookedly along the curb outside Vail’s Bar, the neon sign buzzing overhead, spilling red light onto the wet pavement. My heart lurched so violently I had to pull over fast, my tires screeching against the asphalt.

I sat there for a moment, staring at his car, my pulse racing. Relief slammed into me, but it was tangled with dread. If he were here, it meant I had found him. But what state was he in? Was he alone? Was he drinking to forget me?

The bar’s entrance was alive with noise, laughter, and shouts spilling into the street whenever the door opened. The windows glowed with a hazy light, silhouettes moving inside. It wasn’t Dan’s kind of place. He hated crowds, hated loud music.

So why was he here? I swallowed hard, my hands gripping the wheel until my fingers hurt. For two days, I had imagined every worst-case scenario. And now that he was so close, I was terrified of which one would be true.

I turned off the ignition, forcing myself to breathe. My whole body trembled as I stared at the glowing sign, fighting the urge to stay in the car forever.

I stayed in the car, frozen, my forehead pressed to the steering wheel. The neon glow from Vail’s Bar pulsed through the windshield, red light flickering across my face like a warning. Every instinct told me to run inside, to find him, to demand he look at me. But I couldn’t move. My fear was heavier than my body.

What if he wasn’t ready to see me?

What if he looked at me the way he did when I confessed, like I was already gone to him? What if… he wasn’t alone? The thought sliced through me like glass. I couldn't bare thinking about losing him.

My chest tightened as I lifted my head, eyes glued to the bar’s door. People came and went in noisy clusters, laughter sharp against the night. My pulse jumped each time the door swung open, but it was never him. I chewed at my lip until it bled, the metallic taste pooling on my tongue.

And then, he walked out.

Dan stepped out into the night air, his shoulders squared, his dark jacket dusted with rain. For a moment, relief flooded me, so powerful it blurred my vision. I almost opened the car door, ready to run to him.

But then I saw her.

A woman followed close behind him, her hand brushing his arm as if she had every right to. She was tall, her hair catching the neon glow, her laugh sharp.

Dan didn’t shrug her off. He didn’t even look uncomfortable. He just kept walking, his face unreadable, his stride steady as if this, her, was normal. My breath caught in my throat. My chest caved in around the sight. Two days of silence, two days of not knowing, and now this. “God, no…” I whispered, my hand flying to my mouth. Tears pricked my eyes, hot and merciless.

Every muscle in me screamed to throw the car door open, to storm over and demand answers. But I stayed rooted to the seat, trembling, watching the man I loved walk away from me, with someone else at his side.