Pure Redemption (Tainted Legacy) Read Online Free

the sunshine, the warm breeze, her friends’ constant attention to her or , most likely , a combination of it all. Regardless of the reason, she felt just a little bit peaceful inside.
    “This is it,” Molly said dramati cally as she flung her arms out. T he bags she was holding bounced at the movement. “This is where we saw him.”
    Ava spun around, taking it in. The wooden boardwalk was high on the riverbank, overlooking the river. A wooden railing ran along the edge on the side facing the water. On the other side, there was a grassy strip that led to a sidewalk that was lined with shops. It seemed that there was an overabundance of restaurants for such a small area. But the patrons loved the scenic view of the river and all of them seemed to remain quite busy.
    The strip was almost two blocks long. She and Gabe had been inside almost every one of those shops as well as a few of the restaurants.
    She took a deep breath. Her eyes darted around. It was the middle of the week, a workday for most. There weren’t a lot of people out and about.
    “It was when? What time yesterday?” she finally asked.
    “Um,” Julia’s brow furrowed. “I had to work at five. So maybe around four? We were coming from the lake,” she vaguely pointed in the direction of the lake, the one that fed the river. “We decided to walk down this way because I wanted one of those fruit fusion smoothies. The one that’s loaded with ginseng and vitamins and—”
    “We were heading that way,” Molly interjected, pointing. “He was heading the opposite direction. There were a lot more people. I suppose people running errands at the end of the day or something. He just, well, he stood out in the crowd because he was so tall.”
    Ava’s heart flipped in her chest before plummeting to her toes.
    “He was tall?” It felt as though she had to push the words through her lips.
    Julia nodded. “Tall-tall. Like Gabe tall.”
    Ava backed up against the railing, letting it help support her. She closed her eyes, rubbed her temples and tried to clear her head.
    Her friends were at her sides, like a pair of mismatched bookends, instantly.
    “That’s what made me think for sure it was him,” Molly admitted. “I mean, sure, people can look similar but that was a pretty distinguishing feature of his.”
    She nodded. She was tall as well, at least taller than average. She towered over her friends and yet, she’d barely reached Gabe’s shoulder.
    Yes , she thought, his height would be hard to miss .
    “We were right over there, by that tree, but we were walking on the boardwalk when we saw him. I don’t know if he even saw us but as he passed by I said his name. Oh, I already told you that part,” Julia muttered. “Anyhow, he didn’t look. Didn’t even flinch, just kept walking. I said it again, louder, but still,” she shrugged, “nothing.”
    “You don’t know where he went?” Ava asked.
    “Not really,” Julia admitted. “Maybe we should’ve followed him. It’s just that it was so unexpe cted. We really didn’t have much of a chance to think it over . And it would’ve felt weird to chase after some stranger. I wouldn’t want him getting the wrong idea, e specially if it wasn’t him. That could lead to a potentially hazardous situation.” She shuddered at the thought.
    “Have you tried just calling him?” Molly blurted out.
    Ava nodded slowly. She had. Not that she had expected him to answer. She knew he wouldn’t. She had simply wanted to hear his voice. But there was no message prompting voicemail. “His phone’s been disconnected.”
    “Well, that’s just ridiculous,” Molly grumbled.
    “Can you remember what Grier told you?” Ava asked. She had been meaning to ask for a while. But a part of her had not wanted to hear the answer. Grier, the girl…no, not a girl…the angel she had thought of as her friend had taken care of things after Gabe’s disappear ance. She’d done that by manipulating everyone’s memory of