Forgetting Billions | ✓

26 | Forgetting Choices

JASMINE'S FINGERS brushed over the gun in her purse. Oddly enough, she felt more paranoid, more in danger, with the weapon near her. Maybe it was because Jasmine believed it could shoot her on its own. She mustered whatever courage she had left to drop it into her most inconspicuous bag and store it in her dresser. She didn't want to use it, not even if she needed it. She didn't want any more blood on her hands, not after how stained her palms were already.

She closed the dresser with a sharp bang, pushing the gun out of her mind.

Jasmine fell onto her bed with a sigh. Yesterday never seemed to end as she and her cousins finally caught up. She wasn't complaining. She enjoyed spending her time with them, but she did wish for more rest.

She would do anything to close her eyes and not wake up for days if that meant she wouldn't have to hold up the facade that was Jasmine Karesh.

When she decided to nap instead of catch up on her homework, Shayan texted her. And damn it, that boy could make her want to run a marathon if he asked nicely, despite how tired she was.

Shayan Khan: I visited Bianca today. She needs to talk to you. We have to talk to you.

Jasmine Karesh: Now?

Shayan Khan: Now.

Shayan Khan: Maria isn't here and neither is Ashton. There are only interns and officers that don't know us at the station. Now is the time.

Jasmine Karesh: We are not breaking Aunt Bia out!

Shayan Khan: Who said anything about breaking her out?

Jasmine groaned and pushed herself off her lovely bed with its soft pillows and comfortable blanket. She looked back one last time before marching out the door, thankful her parents were working late that day. After a quick walk, she was at the front door of the police station. Her hand hovered over the door handle and she could feel the ground swing beneath her feet. The last time she was here, she was told that she knew the person who wanted to hurt her. The last time she was here, her biggest problem was Evan punching Shayan over a golden photograph.

She pushed the door open with a shiver. This time, there was no sleeping police officer at the front desk. Almost all the officers were conversing in the breakroom further down the hall, but the empty desks and hushed voices were enough to make the building seem dangerous.

Ashton was right, the department sucked without Maria.

Jasmine caught a glimpse of Shayan's trademark messy hair and she broke into a light jog. It was so lifeless in the office that she half expected someone to jump out and stop her from moving any closer to Bianca as if this were all some trap.

No one did, but her heart continued to beat erratically.

"Jasmine!" Bianca gasped, her fingers tightening around the metal bars of her cell so hard that her knuckles paled. She looked like a ghost, ready to haunt those who had sinned against her. Once she reached the cell, she placed her hands over Bianca's, closing her eyes.

"I've missed you so much," Jasmine whispered, her voice trembling.

Bianca watched her with interest as she waited for any information regarding her family. "I've missed you too, love. How are my babies?"

"Better. They're doing bett-," she began before Shayan cut her off.

"I don't mean to break up the heart to heart, but there's actually something important to go over right now," Shayan said.

She pulled her fingers away from Bianca's, making her way back over to Shayan, who offered her a weak smile. He wrapped his arms around Jasmine and she leaned her head against his shoulder at the touch. They were on one side of the room and Bianca was on another, and all she wanted was to destroy the boundary separating them.