Moonless Night

Chapter 7

  "Do you want to talk about it?" Evan asked.

  I didn't respond. We were at home. I had regained my balance on our silent drive home. Immediately after our arrival, I trudged up to my room and took a long shower. I came out an hour later and lay on the couch, watching TV with Evan. We were silent for a few minutes before he asked. When he did ask, I wondered what he meant. There was an awful lot we could talk about. Some I'd much rather forget.

  "Talk about what?" I asked. "You're being vague."

  "Oh." Evan breathed out a long sigh. "I mean about what that Kuran girl said when we were leaving."

  I looked at him in surprise. "What?"

  He laughed nervously. "Well, more like how you reacted to what she said."

  Oh. He meant that. Why that of all things?

  "When she said you could tell her anything," he began hesitantly. "You smiled and said she might regret saying that. I don't know why but serious chills were going down my spine as you said it. I got the feeling there was more to it. Can you tell tell me what you meant?"

  I tensed. He really knew how to press the wrong buttons.

  "You don't have to if you don't want to," he added quickly.

  I sighed. My overprotective big brother was precious to me, and he was too important to me to hear what I truly meant. Too important to know what happened all those years ago. He might hate me if he knew that happened.

  "No," I said slowly. "I have to tell you, you're my brother. I trust you not to hate me too much."

  Evan frowned. "I'd never hate you. Even if you told me you murdered someone."

  I thought about it. "Well, that's not it." I laid my head on a pillow and closed my eyes. "But it's pretty close."

  I heard him shift on the other couch. "Stella?"

  "Evan, have you ever went through something so terrible you wished you could forget?" Not that I did.

  He went silent and all I could hear was the low voices from the TV. I began to hope he would drop the subject, but no, he was only thinking.

  "No," he answered thoughtfully. "I don't believe I have."

  "Then you wouldn't understand," I muttered.

  "Tell me," Evan said, almost demanded. "Tell me what made you say that to that girl."

  "Evan..."

  "I want to know," he said stubbornly. "I want to know what caused you to be so angry."

  Angry? I wasn't angry. Not exactly.

  "Are you sure," I said softly, opening my eyes to look at him. "You may regret it."

  He frowned in annoyance.

  "Sorry." I sighed. "Okay. I'll tell you why I said that to Aliss."

  I could feel him lean forward in anticipation. I sighed again. Evan could be dense sometimes. Didn't he consider the fact that the reason for the way I spoke to Aliss was painful to me? That it hurt for me to think about?

  Apparently not, his bright eyes were gleaming with curiosity, almost like the first time we met.

  "Evan," I began, closing my eyes. "Do you know how Cole got that long scar?"