You Thought My Turn Could Always Come Later Chapter 05
It was dark by the time the bus pulled into Boston.
Ms. Ward was waiting for me at the station exit.
When she saw me with nothing but an old backpack, she froze for a second.
“Where’s your luggage?”
“This is it.”
She studied my face for a moment, then said nothing more, only reaching out to take my trophy.
“Your dorm is all set up. The school will lend you some basic supplies for now.”
“Sabine, remember one thing,” she said, her voice firm. “You got here on your own. You don’t owe anyone a thing.”
My nose stung. I gave a small nod.
At that same moment, Ronan Burke came home carrying two tubs of ice cream.
The strawberry was already melting.
He knocked on the front door several times, but no one answered.
When he pushed it open, he saw that half the closet was empty and the textbooks on the desk were gone.
A cold panic seized him.
“Sabine?”
“Sabine!”
No one answered.
Chloe was lounging on the couch with her iPad, looking annoyed.
“She’s probably just hiding to scare you,” she said with a roll of her eyes. “Sabine’s good at that kind of drama.”
For the first time, Ronan didn’t go over to soothe her.
He rushed into Sabine’s room, yanking open the closet and dropping to his knees to look under the bed.
No suitcase.
No bus ticket.
No note.
The only thing he found was the cracked plastic shell of an inhaler in the trash.
His hands were shaking as he picked it up.
“What is this?”
Chloe’s eyes darted away.
“How should I know?”
Ronan stared at the words printed on the casing.
*Albuterol Sulfate Inhalation Aerosol.*
He remembered what Sabine had said.
*So she gets to pay your debt with my life?*
And he had answered, *It’s broken. I’ll just buy you a new one.*
Ronan shot to his feet.
“Why is her inhaler in the trash?”
Megan came out of the kitchen, pulling Chloe behind her.
“It’s just a piece of plastic. Why are you yelling? Chloe didn’t know how important it was.”
The color drained from Ronan’s face.
“You knew?”