Series: Cobalt Empire Series by Krista Ritchie
Total pages in book: 234
Estimated words: 226965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1135(@200wpm)___ 908(@250wpm)___ 757(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 226965 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1135(@200wpm)___ 908(@250wpm)___ 757(@300wpm)
“Probably.”
My brows shoot up. Shocked he even answered, but Beckett is blunt as fuck.
“Our morals aren’t exactly on par with his. He’s one of the best guys you could’ve been with in your situation, Harriet, and you lifted something heavy off him these past few months. You two were good for each other.”
“Were,” I mutter, staring haunted at the floor. “We’re already in the past tense.” It’s a punch to the gut. I’m surprised I’m not bent over. “Everyone always leaves me in the end…” I trail off into the tense silence.
“I know Ben,” he says in the quiet, lifting my gaze to his. “He’s too selfless. He’s too altruistic. Too caring. The only reason he could’ve had the strength to abandon you was knowing you wouldn’t be abandoned—because you have us. And regardless of what that test says, I will be giving my brother his final wish for the rest of my life. I promise you that.”
I shake my head as tears roll. I wipe them roughly away. “Ben has given me too much. Even when he’s gone, he’s given me a family.”
“That’s my brother. That’s Pip,” Beckett says lovingly, fondly, sentimentally, as if he’s remembering years of time with him.
The timer beeps, and the not pregnant result doesn’t alleviate my paranoia like it should’ve. I’m numb to the fact that I won’t be dealing with a massive life decision.
Though Ben wouldn’t want me to, I would sacrifice everything to find him.
My grades.
Harold.
Tom’s offer to join the band.
I’d drop out of MVU tomorrow. Never become a doctor.
I would lose it all for him to come back. For him to be alive and safe. For him to not be alone in the wilderness forever.
55
HARRIET FISHER
It’s been three days. No signs of Ben.
No letters. No clouds in the sky spelling his name. No crumbs leading to his whereabouts. It’s all been dead-end after dead-end. His mom texts me every morning, every afternoon, calls me every night, asking if I’ve heard anything.
When I say no, she reassures me she will scour the entire earth for Ben. I believe her. She won’t rest until she finds her youngest boy, but how do you find someone that intended to never be found?
It should be heartening knowing the Rose Calloway and Connor Cobalt are his parents. Surely gods will be able to locate their son. But I think Ben knew exactly who he was trying to fool. He knew he had to outwit his cunning family.
I’m more and more afraid he’s succeeding.
Still, I try not to wallow. Rose tells me, “Chin up. Shoulders back. Imagine the whole auditorium is full of idiots and you’re the only smart one,” the morning of my Ovid presentation. The pep talk and ego-boost are appreciated.
Xander and I practiced for hours together in his apartment, so we should be fine. Totally fine. No hives.
Just a really heavy heart.
“Where’s Ben?” Professor Wellington asks as Xander and I approach the podium. His white brows knit together. He seems genuinely puzzled why a student would miss their final presentation.
Xander pushes away the mic, then whispers to Professor Wellington, “Ben’s not coming.”
He lets out a disappointed sigh. “Well, that’s too bad. He was doing very well.”
“He’ll be back,” I pipe in. “It’s a stomach bug. Can he do a make up? Like maybe an extra essay to weigh against the zero?”
Xander gives me a soft look, then nods to the professor. “He was puking all night. They’re giving him an IV drip in his apartment—our family has doctors on call. I’m his cousin, which you might not know because you likely don’t read tabloids, and why am I saying this?” Xander shakes his head at himself and accidentally makes eye contact with several girls in the second row.
They audibly gasp and shriek.
Professor Wellington just smiles. “Ah, I remember Ben telling me you’re his cousin.” I’m not at all surprised Ben chatted with our ancient professor. “I’ll go over extra credit opportunities with him when he returns to class. And don’t forget, there’s still the final exam next week.”
It might be extreme wishful thinking that Ben will be here for finals, but I can’t reject the idea of him coming back. I’m not sure how he will yet. Maybe he’s knee-deep in snow and he’ll be afraid of frostbite, so he’ll return to civilization. Okay, this might sound like something I would fear and do, but I imagine different scenarios where Ben decides he needs to be in New York.
If he shows up, he needs a chance to complete the semester without failing, and I feel good knowing Xander and I can give him that.
Professor Wellington waves us to the podium. “You two can carry on.”
Carry on.
As if it’s so easy to do without him.
One foot in front of the other, Fisher. Is his voice going to be in my head from now on? Don’t fucking cry. I blow out an uneven breath. Xander sidles next to me and tips his head down to mine. “We’ve got this,” he whispers to me, his voice shaking just a little. “Fuck.”