Hardwired by Trisha Leaver Page A

but up this close, it was undeniable. Her hair was the same auburn color as Olivia’s, and her eyes … they were the exact same shade of ice blue. And they were every bit as sad.
    I hadn’t seen Olivia since the day we buried my brother. I’d gone back to Tyler’s grave later that night to say goodbye to him in private. Olivia was sitting there, her hands sunk deep into the dirt, talking to Tyler as if he were sitting right there next to her. I didn’t expect her to do what she did; I thought her parting words of “I’ll see you soon” were nothing more than a promise to visit his grave the next day. If I’d known, if I’d only taken the time to stop by her house on my way home, maybe she’d still be here.
    â€œI know you,” I said. “You’re Olivia’s sister.”
    She nodded and backed away, her eyes flickering to Chris. I saw the request in them, the silent plea for me to protect her from him. It split me in two. “He won’t hurt you,” I said again. “Neither of us will.”
    She ignored me, her eyes darting to the trees surrounding us, looking for the quickest way to escape.
    â€œDo you know who I am?” I asked. “Do you recognize me at all?”
    â€œNo,” she said.
    It made sense, I guess. We’d never actually been formally introduced. She was a year younger than me and went to a different school. The only time we’d been within touching distance of each other was at Tyler’s funeral, and needless to say, I hadn’t been paying much attention to who was there.
    â€œI’m Lucas,” I said, hoping the sound of my name would jar her memory. “Lucas Marshall. Tyler’s brother.”

    We stood like that forever—Carly’s eyes darting from my hair, to my mouth, to the hole in my jeans—while Chris watched from a distance, confused.
    â€œUmm, I take it you two know each other?” Chris said.
    I nodded and Carly remained silent. She looked nervous, her weight shifting from one leg to the other as she scanned the tree line. I didn’t know what, or rather who, she was looking for, but it was obvious she didn’t feel safe out in the open. With us.
    â€œYeah, we know each other. Well, we know of each other. Carly, meet Chris; Chris, meet Carly,” I said, waving my hands between the two of them.
    â€œAnd how, exactly, do you know her?” Chris seemed skeptical. I couldn’t blame him. It was one thing to run into people you knew at the movies, or the mall, or the grocery store. But out in the middle of nowhere in the wake of a blizzard? Yeah, that was weird.
    â€œHer last name is Denton,” I said, answering Chris’s question. “She’s from my hometown. Her sister used to date my brother.” I turned back to Carly. “What are you doing here?”
    â€œWhat am I doing here?” she asked, reiterating my question. “Why are you here? You’re supposed to be locked up inside.”
    Her gaze shifted to the tangle of trees behind us, and she started taking tiny steps backward again. Her hands tensed at her sides and she turned slightly, her stance widening as if she were getting ready to run.
    â€œCome here,” I said softly, coaxing her forward. For the life of me, I couldn’t understand why she was so scared of me.
    â€œYou screw her over or something back home?” Chris asked as he watched Carly hold her ground, her feet melding to the snow-covered road. “Because that girl looks more than a little freaked to see you.”
    â€œShut the hell up,” I yelled. I hadn’t merely screwed Carly over, I’d let her only sister die. I’d been so fixated on my own grief that I’d ignored every word Olivia uttered at my brother’s grave.
    â€œI’m not scared of you,” she quickly spit out. “You’re Lucas? You’re Tyler’s brother? And you’re really here, standing