When I got home , it was already dark . The hallway lights were dim . I was halfway across the foyer when I saw him . Before I could say a word … His palm cracked across my face so fast I didn't have time to brace for it . My head whipped to the side , and my shoulder slammed into the doorframe . My vision went white for a second . I heard a dull ring in my ears . But I didn't let go of the urn . ! I don't know how . Instinct maybe . I just knew I had to protect it . That little ceramic thing held more of me than I had left. " Are you insane ? " Torren's voice was loud enough to rattle the glass by the stairwell . " How dare you insult my parents like that ? " & I stared at him . My mouth was still closed . He kept going . " They told me everything . Said you spit in their tea . Said you threatened them . Threatened to kill them in their own home . What kind of sick bitch does that ? " Before I could even shake my head , his hand came down again . Another slap , harder than the first . My neck snapped slightly to the left . I tasted blood in my mouth . Still , no tears.8 My face stung . My heart didn't . " " Torren , " Ruby called out , like she was trying to sound worried . But I heard the syrup in her voice . " Please don't . She's not worth it . Just let her calm down , okay ? She's just … tired or something . " B He turned to her and softened like a switch flipped . " Babe , don't waste your breath . She's been like this since day one . Always making herself the victim . Always twisting things ." " You've just been too kind to her , " he added , nodding like it was fact . " That's why she thinks she can keep stepping out of line . " Ruby pouted , curling into the wall like some fragile princess , her eyes flicking toward me as if I was dirt on her shoe . Jude was sitting on the couch with his headphones still around his neck , one side slipping off . His music was still playing faintly . He didn't pause it . He didn't ask what was happening . He just smirked like this was some afternoon comedy show . !! None of the maids moved . I saw them standing near the dining room door , whispering again . " She's still holding the urn … " " She didn't even fight back " " Poor thing … she's just a ghost now . " " I heard she went to the ocean alone . With the boy's ashes . " I didn't react . I didn't have the energy . Then Torren looked down at my arms . At the white urn I held it so carefully.E " What's that ? " he asked , like it was nothing . Like it was just another bag . Before I could take a step back , he grabbed it from mex " No , I said , too late . He held it in one hand , looked at it with disgust . " Are you serious right now ? he asked . " You went out crying to strangers with this thing ? What is this ? Another one of your pathetic performances ? " ! He shook it . Lightly , but it was enough to make my stomach flip . My hands clenched at my sides . " An um ? Who died this time ? " he sneered . " Your pride ? " Behind him , Ruby gave a soft laugh and turned her face like she was trying to hide it . Jude chuckled , still watching like a casual viewer I stood there , blood dried on my lip , my face burning , but my voice came steady " Give that back . " He raised it higher . " Why ? Who is it supposed to be ? Huh ? You collecting ashes now ? " I stared right at him . My jaw locked . I didn't blink . " It's Cleo ," I said Silence hit the room like someone cut the air with a knife . Torren's smirk dropped . Ruby stopped smiling . Jude blinked once and looked away . Nobody spoke . " Torren's eyes narrowed as he slowly looked back down at the urn . His grip loosened a little . But he didn't say a word . I just stood there . Empty . Broken . Waiting to see if he'd hand my son back to me , or if he'd shatter what was left of my then the um hit the floor before I could even move … TV world I heard it crack before I saw it . That sharp , sick sound of ceramic snapping into pieces . Then came the burst … like dust exploding out of a vacuum . Only it wasn't dust . It was Cleo . My boy . What was left of him . Scattered across the tiles like he exploding out of a vacuum . Only it wasn't dust . It was Cleo . My boy . What was left of him . Scattered across the tiles like he was never loved , never held , never mine . I screamed . " It came from somewhere deep , somewhere I did not even know was still alive . I dropped to my knees . My hands started moving on their own , trying to gather what I could . Ash . Bone . Bits of the urn . All of it mixed together . My fingers trembled so badly they looked like they did not belong to me . My nails scraped the floor , dug into the sharp pieces . I could not feel the pain yet . Only the emptiness . I heard him behind me . Torren . Breathing like nothing happened . Watching me like I was a mess he regretted stepping over . " " Stop screaming like someone killed you , " he said flatly . " You're not the victim here ! " I could not even lift my head . I was still scooping the pieces . The tears blurred everything . But I felt the heat in my face . I felt something break . Again.E He kept talking . Loud and heartless . [ " I got the hospital's update this morning , " he said . " Cleo's fine . Smiling in his bed . Sitting up . The doctor even sent photos . " " I looked down at my hands . Ash was under my nails , on my palms , in the cracks of the floor . " " You lied , " Torren said , closer now . " You really faked his death to get sympathy ? You're sicker than I thought . " " H - he died ," I whispered . " I held him … I held him when he stopped breathing . " " But it was like talking to a wall that hated sound . Ruby came around from behind him , all gentle and delicate like a wilted flower that had learned how to poison . She knelt beside Torren and put a hand on his arm , speaking sweet and low . " Maybe she's mad at me , Torren , " she said , pretending to choke back tears . " Maybe she hated me so much she wanted me to feel pain . Maybe that is why she said he was dead. Just to scared me . " She glanced at the ashes . Her lips tightened in a little fake shiver . " Maybe that's me someday , " she whispered . " Dust on the floor . Forgotten . Disrespected . " I And then she started crying . Big , heavy sobs that looked more like theater than grief . She pressed her hand to her chest , leaned on the couch like her heart had collapsed . Jude was watching , quiet until she reached for him . Chapter 60