Back The Falling Save as PDF
Chapters (73)
  1. CONTENTS
  2. ALSO BY ANNA TODD
  3. DEDICATION
  4. PROLOGUE
  5. CHAPTER ONE
  6. CHAPTER TWO
  7. CHAPTER THREE
  8. CHAPTER FOUR
  9. CHAPTER FIVE
  10. CHAPTER SIX
  11. CHAPTER SEVEN
  12. CHAPTER EIGHT
  13. CHAPTER NINE
  14. CHAPTER TEN
  15. CHAPTER ELEVEN
  16. CHAPTER TWELVE
  17. CHAPTER THIRTEEN
  18. CHAPTER FOURTEEN
  19. CHAPTER FIFTEEN
  20. CHAPTER SIXTEEN
  21. CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
  22. CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
  23. CHAPTER NINETEEN
  24. CHAPTER TWENTY
  25. CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
  26. CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
  27. CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
  28. CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
  29. CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
  30. CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
  31. CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
  32. CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
  33. CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
  34. CHAPTER THIRTY
  35. CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
  36. CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
  37. CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
  38. CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
  39. CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
  40. CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
  41. CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
  42. CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
  43. CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE
  44. CHAPTER FORTY
  45. CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
  46. CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
  47. CHAPTER FORTY-THREE
  48. CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
  49. CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
  50. CHAPTER FORTY-SIX
  51. CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
  52. CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
  53. CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
  54. CHAPTER FIFTY
  55. CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
  56. CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
  57. CHAPTER FIFTY-THREE
  58. CHAPTER FIFTY-FOUR
  59. CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
  60. CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
  61. CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
  62. CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
  63. CHAPTER FIFTY-NINE
  64. CHAPTER SIXTY
  65. CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE
  66. CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO
  67. CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE
  68. CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR
  69. A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
  70. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  71. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  72. COPYRIGHT
  73. ABOUT THE PUBLISHER

The sun was shining, but not a single bird was chirping. No garbage truck was grumbling. Not one person was starting their car. It was eerily silent. Maybe that’s why Bradley’s presence seemed a little more sinister that morning. I looked at him anew and wondered why he combed his white-blond hair down the middle, why he thought it was a good idea to expose such a harsh line of scalp. Really, what I wanted to know was where he was going with that rolled-up rug in the back of his truck. Maybe I’d seen one too many episodes of Criminal Minds, but doesn’t everyone know that’s how you dispose of a body—roll it up in some old carpet and dump it on the edge of town? As my imagination was turning Bradley into a serial killer, he gave me the friendliest wave and a smile, a real one. Or maybe he was just that good at being charming and was actually going to—

I nearly pissed myself when he called out to me.

“Hey, Karina! Water’s out in the whole strip!”

His thin lips turned into a heavy frown as he waved his arms around to show how upset he was. I stopped walking and lifted my hand to cover my eyes from the sun. It was harsh, shining its brightest, even though the air had a little bite to it. Georgia was so damn hot. I thought I’d be used to it after three years, but nope. I longed for the chill of those Texas nights. “I’ve been tryin’ to get the water company out here, but no luck so far.” He shrugged and held up his cell phone as proof.

“Oh, no.” I tried to mimic his tone of frustration over the water, but honestly, I kind of hoped Mali would let us shut down for the day. I had barely slept last night, so I could have used another hour, or twenty, of sleep.

“I’ll keep tryin’ to call them,” he offered.

His fingers reached down and touched his longhorn belt buckle. He looked like he was already sweating, and when he grabbed the massive rug from the bed of his truck, I almost wanted to help him. Almost.

“Thanks,” I said. “I’ll let Mali know when she gets in.”

CHAPTER TWO

The door was locked, the lights were off—even the hallway light that we usually kept on—and it was hot as hell inside. I cranked the a/c, turned on the oil warmers, and lit the candles in the lobby and in Elodie’s workroom and mine.