Fragments Of Hope

Chapter 4

note: I posted the prologue and the first chapter in french. Love this new character :)

warning: flashback of abusive dad

As Harvey removed her helmet and her face came into full view, Tyler's mind raced with questions. "Harvey, what are you doing here?" he blurted out, unable to contain his surprise.

Tyler frowned, sensing that she was being evasive. "What are you doing here?"

Harvey's expression remained unreadable, her eyes darting around as if searching for a way out of the conversation. "It's none of your business, Tyler. I have my own reasons," she retorted sharply.

Tyler's curiosity was piqued as he studied Harvey's behavior. He couldn't shake the feeling that she held a crucial piece of information about the accident.

"I think we both know more than we're letting on about that night, Harvey. Why weren't you at the trial today?" Tyler pressed, his voice tinged with urgency.

The young woman's face faltered for a split second before regaining composure. "Why do you care? It's not like anything is going to change," she shot back, her tone laced with bitterness.

Tyler's frustration mounted as he struggled to make sense of Harvey's cryptic responses. "Your absence at the trial raised too many questions. Your father's lawyer seemed surprised by it too," he pressed on, hoping to break through her guarded exterior.

With a bitter scoff, Harvey met his gaze head-on. "I had no interest in watching a show. I knew how it was going to end," she retorted, her words laced with disdain.

Tyler's brows furrowed, confusion swirling in his mind. "What do you mean? Did you know all along that your father was involved in the accident?" he asked, a glimmer of realization dawning on him.

Her expression remained stoic, but her eyes betrayed a hint of resignation. "Of course, I knew. He orchestrated the whole thing as payback," she confessed, her tone carrying a weight of revelation.

As the pieces of the puzzle fell into place in Tyler's mind, he felt a surge of disbelief and outrage. "Payback? What do you mean? What could my father have possibly done to warrant such retaliation?" he demanded, his voice rising with incredulity.

Harvey hesitated, her composure wavering as she weighed her words carefully. "Your father and mine had history, Tyler. A debt unpaid, a grudge unforgiven. It all goes back to the choices they made and the consequences they faced," she explained, her voice tinged with a mix of resignation and bitterness.

As the revelation sank in, Tyler found himself engulfed in a whirlwind of emotions and questions, his world shaken by the unsettling truth that had been unearthed.

The encounter with Harvey had unraveled a tangled web of secrets and vendettas, leaving Tyler grappling with a newfound understanding of the events that had shaped their lives.

As Tyler watched Harvey sit back on her bike and don her helmet, she fixed him with a steely gaze. "Tyler, you shouldn't be digging into your father's double life. It's dangerous," she advised, her tone firm and final.

Without waiting for a response, Harvey revved her motorcycle engine and with a final glance at Tyler, she said, "Bye," before driving away from the gas station, leaving Tyler to grapple with the weight of her warnings and the unfinished business that lay ahead.

As Tyler drove away from the gas station, the weight of the truth settled heavily on his shoulders, and he knew that he was determined to uncover the full extent of the tangled history that had ensnared their families.