Bea Paige [Paige - Symphony (Finding Their Muse Book 4)

Copyright : Kelly Stock writing as Bea Paige

First Published: 17th June 2019

Publisher: Kelly Stock

Cover by: Peryton Covers

Kelly Stock writing as Bea Paige to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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I n my hand I hold onto the letter I wrote to Erik some twenty-one years ago. Wrote but never posted. The paper is discoloured, the words faded. Its been ten years since I last read it and as I unfold it now, the paper barely holding together at the centre, the memory of the night I wrote it comes flooding back to me, filling my senses alongside the musty smell of old paper.

My hand trembles as I hold the letter delicately between my fingers and thumb, my eyes tearing up at the apology scrawled across its surface and the secrets kept hidden under lock and key for all this time. Within the envelope sits a faded photograph and another document that holds secrets hidden away for years. Secrets Ive selfishly held onto.

My eyes glance over my words. Id been so young and foolish back then. A whimsical girl who had been full of hormones, lust and naivety. If I could go back in time and shake myself I would. My actions that summer destroyed two people I cared about, and like ripples on a pond, my decision to listen to a twisted, embittered woman expanded and grew, still having an effect all these years later.

But with age comes clarity and if theres one thing I do understand, Ms Hadley is just as responsible for Laytons condition as Erik is. As I am. But more than that, shes responsible for her own sons ill health.

A glass cage

I cant even begin to fathom how destroyed Erik must have felt to lock himself inside one. I dont know anything about the man he is now, or his experiences since that fateful night. I only remember the boy he once was and my God, he was gifted, smart, funny, loyal. Id hoped over the years that hed grown into a man that could live up to the memories I treasured, but the truth of who he is came out alongside the lengths his mother had gone to keep him hers.

For the most part this might be an island of decent people, but it still comes with a small village mentality. Everyone talks, even the police officers it would seem. It has become apparent that Erik suffered over the years. He didnt walk into his future without a backward glance like I had thought. That night broke him just as much as it destroyed Layton, and all because of her; his wicked mother and, of course, me.

Love, are you coming? Tim calls from downstairs.

My heart squeezes in my chest at the thought that I could very well destroy our marriage with what Im about to do. I never told Tim about Erik and Layton, or what happened during that long hot summer. Tims my heart, my own love. He is who I adore above all else, but I have to make amends to the boy Id betrayed and the man he almost killed. I cant sit back and stay silent anymore. Neither Erik nor I can change what happened, but he at least deserves to know the full truth, no matter the consequences to me.

Coming, just grabbing a jacket, I lie, folding up the letter, returning it to the box and placing it back into my wardrobe.

Standing, I take a look at my reflection in the mirror; theres only the slightest whispers of the girl I once was in the colour of my hair and the shade of my eyes. Otherwise, she no longer exists. Her easy smile long since hidden beneath years of regret and guilt.

You shouldve posted the letter, I whisper to my reflection, to the ghost of the girl staring back at me.

Love, were going to be late! Tim reminds me, his deep voice sending a familiar warmth flooding beneath my skin.

Drawing in a deep breath, I straighten my spine and slide a stray strand of hair behind my ear. If only Id been brave enough to send Erik the letter. Better still, if only Id been brave enough to say no to Ms Hadley in the first place, then perhaps none of this wouldve happened. But I was a child who had secrets of her own. Secrets Ms Hadley had used against me. Secrets that had the power to destroy, that still do.

Standing here now, about to go out for our anniversary dinner, I know what I must do. I have to make things right because that woman cannot be allowed back into Eriks life to cause more pain, more damage, and theres a chance that might happen if I dont do something. She has the assistance of Viktor Sachov and I know the power he has. He got Erik out of a prison sentence after all, and together he and Ms Hadley blackmailed me into silence.