House of Clowns (HUNT Trilogy #1)

24. WHAT IF?

WHAT IF?

ACE- ONE MONTH AFTER

I went home to lighter air as if the walls themselves let out a sigh of relief the moment the police carried away my father. And for the first time, it felt more like a home—a place where memories could be remade. They say if your heart hurts, surround it with people you love, and for me, that person was Carlo.

Outside, he was laughing, racing through the garden with Christian, their carefree joy washing over me, bringing a smile even as I leaned heavily on the kitchen island, jaw propped on my fists, watching them. Yet Rocco's words swirled in my head, his voice a whisper in the quiet.

"The end does not matter so long as the beginning is right."

In life, we never know the what-ifs, never see the path ahead, or who will heal and hurt us. Human nature stumbles along, hoping the heart can keep up. And mine, well, mine would never forget Rio—or those days at the House of Clowns. I knew that he would not have let me go willingly, knew there was a choice taken away.

Every day, I would write another chapter, grasping for a new beginning, yet sliding back to the pages that I had bookmarked, where he still lived in my heart. On those pages was his laughter, his presence, something more than just the mask he wore. Yet life has a way of snatching them back, making me continue to write, to turn the pages. But every line seemed to be haunted by memories of another.

A tear escaped onto my cheek, then the ringing phone snapped me back. I rubbed the tear off and steeled myself to answer.

"Hello?" My voice came steady, but upon hearing him—his voice at the other end—I froze.

"If, ten years from now, you need someone to love, would you think about loving me?" His voice was barely more than a whisper; the signal crackled.

My eyes welled up with tears, and I finally found words that came rushing up my throat as I clutched onto the phone. "You were always my first choice… and my favorite ending, too."

"I'll meet you at the maze," he said. His voice cracked softly.

My heart was racing, and I swallowed hard, laughing through my tears. "I'll be in white."

"And I'd be the clown looking back."

And just like that, the line was dead.

The phone fell from my hand as I slid down the wall, my body hitting the floor, sobs racking my chest as I clung fast to those memories. I wanted to tear through time right now, close the distance between us, and get him back.

We had come so close, almost made it.

"This is the story, Mom," I whispered through my tears, looking up as if somehow she could hear me. "The story of how your daughter fell in love with a clown."

I smiled bittersweet, sending those words out like a prayer. "Keep an eye on him."

He has my heart .