TWISTED FATE (Twisted Path Book 1)

Chapter 42

Becca

I blink. That's not at all what I was expecting him to say. But now that the name is out there, I remember the scandal that swept through our town like wildfire. The way her name, once synonymous with academic excellence, suddenly became a punchline. A warning. A shameful stain people couldn't stop talking about. She and her family were dragged through the mud, judged, humiliated, and run out of town. All because she got too close to Nicholas Kline.

I didn't know the details then. I still don't—partly because of my aversion to our town's rumor mill and the lies it loves to whisper. But I do remember how fast it all changed for her. One minute, she was one of the most promising students in her graduating class—bright, focused, bound for something bigger. The next, she was trash. A whore. A social climber who'd "played her cards wrong." The things people said about her were vile. Cruel. And worse, familiar. Because it wasn't all that different from what they say about my mother.

It's why I never let myself get dragged into the gossip. Why I turned away when her name came up. Because I knew what it felt like to be the girl dragged through the mud for circumstances beyond her control. Or worse, for lies people were too eager to believe.

"She was... everything," Nick says, his voice rough. "Smart. Funny. Brave. The kind of brave that doesn't flaunt itself. It just shows up when it matters. Quiet. Steady. Fierce when it counts." His jaw tightens. "She made me want to be someone else. Someone better."

The reverence in his tone shifts the air in the room. The way he talks about her—not like a ghost, but like a light that still burns somewhere inside him—makes something ache in my chest.

He pauses, swallowing hard.

"She was the first person who ever saw me. Not the Kline name. Not the money. Not my father's shadow. Me." He exhales, his breath heavy. "And God help me, I clung to her like she was oxygen." His eyes flicker away for a moment. "I still hate myself for that. It was so goddamn selfish."

Beside me, Shane's grip tightens around my hand. I glance down. His thumb strokes slow, grounding circles over my knuckles. But his body is rigid. I can feel the restraint in him, the coiled tension.

"I thought I could protect her," his voice cracks. "I really fucking thought I could shield her from him. I knew how he operated. I knew what he was capable of. But I thought... I hoped she was far enough outside his world to be safe."

He shakes his head.

"I was wrong. So fucking wrong."

A muscle in Shane's jaw twitches. His eyes narrow, but he doesn't speak.

Nick drags a hand through his hair, then leans forward, elbows on the table. His shoulders hunch, his body folding inward like the weight of this story is too much for him to carry.

"He went after her dad first. Framed him for embezzlement. Tore their family's company apart. Wiped their savings, their reputation, their name. All of it gone in mere weeks."

He swallows again, the sound thick, like he's choking on the words.

"But Miranda stayed with me. Even as her family's financial security collapsed around her, she stayed. For me." His voice cracks. "God, and I fucking let her."

Tears sting my eyes. I don't blink them away because I can't. Overcome by the intense sadness in his voice, I can't move. Can't hardly breathe.

"Then one night..." He exhales sharply, the sound bitter and full of pain. "We thought we were alone. We thought we were safe. We were in my house. In my bedroom, where we should have been safe."