Chapter 6 #2
Did he really think I would fall for this?
That I would take one look at his daughter and my resolve to not break would weaken?
That I would crumble at her feet and beg for help?
If so, then what? Is he waiting for me just outside the front gates where he’ll laugh at me for falling for one of his tricks?
I could’ve sworn he’d forgotten about me, given it’s been a while since I’ve seen his ugly mug, but maybe he was just waiting to strike again.
Everly whimpers and cringes as I truly choke her now. She doesn’t fight me, but she’s trembling with terror as I glare down at her. I shake her hard, and she winces.
“Get the hell out of here. If I ever see you here again…” I lean forward until our noses brush.
Lowering my voice, I snarl, “I swear to god, I’ll kill you, Everly.
I’ll do it with my bare hands and happily watch the life extinguish from your eyes.
Then I’ll jerk off on your corpse before I toss it into a shallow grave outside my bedroom window.
That way, I can look out every morning and spit on it. Don’t test me, because I will do it.”
With that, I shove her away. She stumbles backward, gasping for air. With a shaking hand, she reaches up to touch her neck.
“But, Maverick?—”
“ Get the fuck out of here !”
“FINE!” she roars back with more gumption than I’ve ever heard from her. She points at me and adds, “But I’ll be back, Maverick Sutherfield! Tonight . I’m going to get you out of here, so be ready to go.”
With a haughty foot stomp, she turns and storms away. I watch the sway of her hips reluctantly, trapped in a trance I can’t fucking snap myself out of.
The door barely shuts behind her before Nolan slips back in.
His expression is tight as he hurries over to me.
Tall, with wide shoulders, blond hair buzzed short, and an expression always set in grim determination, Nolan has an imposing presence about him.
He’s a good guy who has my back—something I’ve never truly had before.
As someone just as unhappy to be here as I am, we’ve bonded over the past few years.
Like me, Nolan lost his life the moment he was thrown into Serenity Falls.
He had a future in the NFL as a quarterback, but a lapse in medication led to him making a few poor decisions, which caused his parents to believe he was better off hidden from the world.
Now, until a legal guardian signs off for him, Nolan’s trapped here just like I am.
“What the hell was that about?” he demands.
“Nothing,” I snap. “Don’t worry about it.”
Nolan’s brows raise. “Don’t worry about it? You look ready for war, and the girl left here in tears. Something happened, Vick.”
I know he’s not going to let this go until I give him something . Grimacing, I admit, “That was Everly Woodrow.”
“Okay, so what did Everly say to—” He pauses, blinking rapidly. “Wait, did you just say her last name was Woodrow ?”
I don’t repeat myself; there’s no need. Nolan knows how I got thrown into Serenity Falls. Out of everyone here, staff and patients alike, he’s probably the only one who actually believes me.
“Look, do you want to talk about it or…?” Nolan pushes anxiously. “I know your past can be a trigger to?—”
“No, I don’t want to fucking talk about it, Nolan!” I roar, letting the rage Everly stirred up come blasting out. “I want to work out and pretend she wasn’t here. This was all some stupid ploy by her father to get in my goddamn head.”
Nolan doesn’t react to my outburst, having been privy to many of them over the years. Instead, he stares at me for a long, hard moment before shrugging.
“Fine. Let’s up your next rep,” he says.
Nolan strolls over to the rack and quickly gets to work adding plates.
My gaze shifts to the wall of windows. They’re facing the front of the building.
Without consciously being aware of the decision, I find myself stalking over to them.
Just as I come to a stop, I catch sight of Everly storming out of the building.
She turns to flip off the doors, probably picturing me in their stead, before stomping away with tears streaming down her face.
Something in my chest tightens. If her presence was all a ruse to get me to lower my guard or to break me, why would she be crying right now? She doesn’t know I can see her, so those tears aren’t for me. Are they angry tears? Is she pissed she was unsuccessful in whatever task James sent her to do?
Or was she here with pure intentions, and I just fucked it all up?
“Hey, what’s this?”
I drag my gaze away from Everly’s retreating form and look at Nolan. In his hand are the two halves of the envelope my ex-best friend’s little sister offered me.
“It’s trash.” Even as I say it, a little voice in the back of my head wonders if it’s more than that.
My fists clench at my sides as rage returns full force. No, it’s definitely fucking trash. No matter what it says, ultimately I can’t trust it.
It would all be a stream of lies.