Page 120 of Challenge Me

“I’m home!” I called, dropping my bag beside the door.

Remi appeared in the entryway, his footsteps silent. I thought he’d be excited, but his mouth was tight and there was a dark look in his eyes.

“What is it?”

Wrapping his arms around himself, he leaned against the frame. “Nothing. How was the flight?”

I took him by both biceps. “Tell me.”

“Maybe you can guess who Oli had a run-in with after he got out of class.”

“You’re kidding. Please tell me you’re kidding.”

“Nope.”

He moved away from me and headed into the kitchen. I watched as he cracked open a beer and took a long swig. After a second, he shook his head and escaped into the backyard. I followed, unsure what to do or say.

When he sparked a cigarette, I decided to step closer. “I haven’t seen you smoke in a while.”

“That’s because I’m not addicted. It’s just a stress thing.”

“Is Oli upset?”

He let out a dry laugh. “Oli is a hard guy to upset. He’s not exactly happy, but that’s for my sake.”

“How’d she target him?”

“We’ve been best friends for fourteen years. It wouldn’t be very hard to find something connecting us.”

“But it’s been two months since she started this.”

With a shrug, he brought the cigarette to his lips. “She’s getting desperate. I made it personal, so she’s doing the same. And no doubt her little fans want more stories to gobble up. Consume, consume, consume. Don’t people know bad things harvest your negative energy?”

“I thought I was the conspiracy guy.”

“Bah.” He chewed on his nail in between pulls from the cigarette. “She needs more. Always more.”

“She wants a finale. I can’t imagine there’s anything to find that’ll give her what she wants.”

His eyes went to the oak tree. “Or you’re not thinking big enough.”

“What could she possibly uncover in your past?”

When his eyes met mine again, they were guarded. It made me move closer, but he stepped back.

“You think there aren’t some juicy tidbits she’d find interesting?” he asked. His head cocked, and like when he’d tried to pull away from me in Florida, his demeanor changed. “Yeah, she’d love to unearth all the things I buried in the dark.”

“Remi . . .”

He craned his neck to the side and gripped his arms tightly, like he wanted out of his skin. “Fucking wolves, man. She’s been circling, and I baited her like a dumbass.” Putting a hand to his head, he drew in a breath. “Thought and Memory. Of course.”

“What are you saying right now?”

He bit a piece off of his thumb nail, and his eyes became crazed. “They showed me. I just didn’t know it. The silence wasn’t a sign of abandonment; it was a warning.”

Though I had no clue what he was going on about, I nodded. “A warning of what?”

“Of what happens if I do nothing. Silence begets silence.” He shook his head, back and forth. “The reflection of life, hanging in the balance but not attached to anything. Not grounded. It’s, um . . .” He snapped his fingers, as if trying to catch something before it slipped away. “The reflections weren’t real. They were like flashes, thought and memory, nothing more. And the ink . . .” He flexed his fingers as he stared at his palm. “I thought it was my blood, but it’s a symbol. Those stories . . . They’ll leave nothing untouched. This peace, this stillness, is a lie, like you said. It’ll fade, and so will I.”