Chapter 62 You Don't Know?
The rest of the night is painful. I love my parents, but I wish I could have made them leave as soon as everything with Alec happened. I did get lucky that at least they left early compared to most of the parents, so it gave me the chance to get to my phone.
I turn it on, half expecting a large amount of notifications from Alec or Cassie, maybe even Noah, but there is nothing. I look at the blank screen, with zero notifications shown, over the picture of Alec I used as my background. Can’t I even get a text to explain himself? I unlock the phone, contemplating who I should call.
After how Alec acted, I wonder if he’ll even answer my call. Maybe I should just call Cassie because she’s the safe option, as long as she has her phone, she’ll answer. But at the same time, Noah might be better; he’s always around Alec, so at least he might have a higher chance of knowing what the fuck happened tonight.
I settle on calling Cassie first. My heart is beating far too quickly, conveying my stress at the situation. I put the phone to my ear, every ring making me grow more antsy. Just when I think she won’t answer, she does.
“Hello?”
“Cassie, hey, I’m sorry to bother you. I just needed to ask you something about Alec.”
She doesn’t say anything. I can hear hushed voices in the background and then rustling. I flinch when a loud, muffled noise comes through the speaker.
“Cassie, are you okay?”
“Are you okay?” Alec’s voice fills my ears, taking me off guard.
I don’t even know what to say. I wasn’t prepared to talk to him right this second. And what about Cassie?
“Anneliese, are you okay?” He asks again, his voice urgent.
“Yes, I’m fine. What happened?” My own voice is showing my frustration. My question is to know about Cassie, but it’s also to know about tonight.
“I can explain everything, but you need to come over right now. Cassie will meet you at my house to bring you here.”
“No, I want you to tell me now.”
He sounds so stressed, but I’m not going to just do whatever he says. It’s making me very angry that he won’t just tell me.
“Please just trust me. As soon as you get here, I will tell you everything.” He practically pleads with me, making me give in.
“Fine, I’m going to your house right now.”
“Thank you so much. Cassie will be there to pick you up.”
I hang up the phone putting in my pocket, and head to his house. I don’t want to waste time since he sounds so desperate. Thankfully, most of the campers are still distracted by the bonfire, so I can easily get into the woods.
I honestly can’t understand what has happened. I feel so blind and foolish, but I really don’t understand why he has gone so crazy. All I know is it has something to do with my parents. But what? Just like he said, when I break out of the path, Cassie is in his driveway, sitting in a truck with the window rolled down.
As soon as she sees me, she turns on the truck. My stomach twists with nerves. Something really isn’t right. I get into the truck. Cassie doesn’t even look at me before putting the truck in reverse. She steps on the gas too hard, making us jolt forward and backward.
“What’s going on?” I finally ask once she starts down the road. My voice is timid, and I can feel the intensity surrounding her.
“You don’t know?” She glances at me with a hard glare on her face.
I flinch back at the anger in her tone.
“What? I don’t know what I’m so confused about what’s going on, please just tell me.”
“You really don’t know, do you?” She looks at me again, shaking her head with a scoff.
“No, I don’t know anything.” I feel like I’m defending my honor, but I don’t even know why.
“I know Alec believes everything you say, and I trust you, but I won’t be clouded by the mate bond. If I sense for a second you’re lying, it won’t be good for you, so please keep that in mind. Be honest.”
I don’t even know what to say. I’m completely shocked at her literally just threatening me. What the hell is she talking about to literally be threatening me like this? Maybe someone else should’ve picked me up if she was gonna be so angry. I don’t know what I’ve done to deserve this. But I also don’t want to ask again. Obviously, she’s not going to tell me anything really useful right now.
We’ve been driving deeper into the woods for about five minutes when she turns down another road, which leads to a driveway. It’s a medium-sized house with several vehicles parked in front. I recognize Noah’s truck in the driveway.
The style is similar to Alec’s house; it looks like a woodsy house. But it’s much, much nicer than Alec’s, which looks like it was built far too long ago. We pull into the driveway, and I immediately spot Alec standing on the porch watching us park near the front of the garage. I hesitate to get out of the truck after she puts it in park. I want to know everything, but I’m worried I’m about to walk into the lion's den, which will result in me being threatened again.
Cassie gets out of the truck, shutting the door hard behind her. Alec glances at her before then refixing his gaze on me. He doesn’t look mad at me, at least. He looks worried and maybe a little upset, but I don’t think he’s upset at me. I muster whatever courage I have to get out of the truck and meet him on the front porch.
“I’m so glad you’re okay.” He pulls me into a tight hug before I have a chance to process anything.
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
My voice sounds more timid than I wish it would, but he hears me. He pulls away, looking down at me, his worried look over his face again.
“Let’s go inside so we can talk.” I follow him into the nice house.
The living room is beautiful, with several couches and a rocking chair arranged around a TV mounted on the wall. I’m about to ask where we are when I see the photos on the wall leading towards the kitchen. They are photos of a man, a woman, and Alec, all at different ages. This must be his parents' house.
No one is in the living room or the kitchen when we walk past it and into a bedroom. I can only assume it's his childhood one. The fact that everyone is obviously hiding from us to talk is even more concerning. He closes the door behind us.
“Just tell me what’s going on, I’m tired of not knowing.” I break the silence.
He finally tells me what’s going on.
“Your parents killed Garrett.