Reason #23 wasn’t like the others. It wasn’t a jab at my appearance or a comment on my family’s financial status. It was something far darker, something that hadn’t been meant for anyone else’s ears, let alone eyes.
“Reason #23,” I began, my voice steady despite the pounding of my heart. “Because keeping secrets is sometimes safer than letting them out.”
A silence rippled through the room, the kind that leaves a ringing in your ears. I could see the confusion in some eyes, the dawning realization in others. Patricia’s face went from a confident smile to an ashen mask of fear.
