“Are you sure?” I asked weakly, needing to be certain that girl was gone.
“Lee, she is being charged with first degree murder, attempted murder, breaking and entering, to mention a few. That bitch will be rotting in prison until the day she dies.”
Memories suddenly started to flood through me.
Her lifeless eyes.
The blood…The blood soaking into her beautiful hair
First degree murder…?
Cam…
“She’s dead?” I asked, praying to god, that Kyle would say no.
He didn’t say anything at all, just nodded his head, confirming to me that my best friend, was in fact dead.
I closed my eyes and screamed.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
Lee
There was a moment, a brief, selfish, flittering moment when I saw the small timber cross engraved with Cam’s name, and a part of me wanted to crawl into the ground beside her.
Kyle’s tight grip on my waist was the only thing keeping me from collapsing.
All he’d done, good, bad and downright stupid, had been for me.
I could see that now.
But the thought of my beautiful, brave best friend, lying cold in the ground, was crushing the air out of my lungs.
It could have been me.
It should have been me.
Cam wasn’t supposed to die; I was.
Rachel had orchestrated everything so perfectly.
She’d been watching the house, had known I’d be on my own.
If Rachel’s plan had gone to par, it would be me in that grave.
But Rachel hadn’t anticipated Cam.
Cam…
My breath caught in my throat. My body shook violently.
I didn’t bother to wipe the tears away, they deserved to be shed. Cam deserved my tears.
She’d protected me my whole life, and was lying in a box, under six feet of earth, because of my inability to protect myself.
I knew it wasn’t my fault, or Kyle’s.
But it didn’t stem the feelings of guilt and responsibility.
From the moment I’d woken up and Kyle had told me Cam was dead, all that had gone through my mind was that it should have been me.
I was beyond grateful that I’d survived.
Hope needed me.
But the unfairness and anger I felt over Cam’s stolen life, ate through my heart, blackening it with nothing but the sense of vengeance.
“Hey, Cam,” I sniffed taking a step forward, before sinking to my knees.
“Princess,” Kyle said, moving towards me quickly, but I held up my hand to warn him off.
“I need to do this.”
Kyle nodded, and took a respectful step back, giving me privacy.
“I still can’t believe this has happened to you,” I cried.
“It’s not fair. You’re so young, so beautiful. You’re my best friend Cam, what am I supposed to do without you? What’s Hope going to do without her Auntie?
“We had so many plans, remember? You were going to take Hope shopping for her first training bra. Help her to pick out her prom dress. Laugh at Kyle’s reaction when Hope went on her first date, and now I’m going to have to do all of that alone.”
I wiped my eyes and nose.
“Why did you do it, Cam?” I whispered.
That was the answer I needed more than anything.
Why had she valued my life more than hers when she stepped in front of that loaded gun?
I asked the question, knowing the answers were buried with my best friend.
I trailed my hand over the upturned earth of her freshly dug grave, and pulled the tiny silver bird charm from my pocket.
“Do you remember when you gave me this?” I asked her.
“I was twelve, and you gave it to me the day you came to tell me you were moving away.”
Sniffing, I rolled the charm between my fingers.
“I asked you why you were giving me a bird charm, and you said…”
I paused, catching my breath. “You said that you ‘d always envied the freedom of a bird, and as long as I kept that charm close to me, no matter what happened in my life, no one could clip my wings.”
With trembling fingers, I placed the delicate charm beneath the cross.
“So Cam, today I want to return your wings. Fly pretty girl, soar and be free.”
I stood slowly, accepting Kyle’s hand.
“Goodbye, Camryn Frey. I’ll love you forever.”
*****
“Did it help?” Kyle asked as we drove back to University Hill.
I looked over at him.
His face had taken on a few worry lines, but his eyes were alive, so full of life that it shook my heart.
“I think so,” I said quietly. “But I know something you could do that would definitely help.”
Kyle clasped my knee, squeezing gently, as he drove. “Name it. Whatever you want, just name it and it’s yours.”
I covered his hand with mine, reveling in the feel of his warm flesh.