Chapter 16
Mellie
I sit on the edge of the bed not quite believing that I’m in the guest bedroom of the house belonging to my boyfriend. Maybe
boyfriend isn’t the right word. Lover? That doesn’t quite fit either. I don’t exactly know how to describe my relationship with Wes Drake, but I love him. I think
he loves me too, but that could all change once he finds me in his home. With his pregnant wife. A little shiver of fear zips
through me. All I want is the chance to talk to Wes. To ask him why he’s been ignoring me, to tell him how much I love him.
If I’m being honest, another reason I decided to come to the ranch was to see what his wife would do when I showed up on her
doorstep. I wanted to find out if she meant it when she said I could call her if I needed anything, day or night. So far,
Madeline is as good as her word.
The sound of breaking glass startles me to my feet.
I go to the bedroom door and open it a crack.
More glass shatters, and I hesitate before calling, “Mrs. Drake?” There’s no response, so I step into the hallway and begin to move down the long corridor that leads to the great room.
That’s when I see a man carrying a crowbar and a gas tank, and I freeze.
He keeps moving in and out of sight as if he hasn’t seen me.
Holding my breath, I scurry back to the bedroom and shut the door.
The man is shouting now, and I don’t know what to do.
I open the closet door, crouch down in the corner, and begin to pull stacks of quilts over me.
I think of Madeline upstairs. Is he here to hurt her? To hurt me?
“Wes,” the man calls in singsong. “Come out and talk to me. Don’t be such a damn coward.”
So he’s after Wes. I wonder what he did to cause this kind of anger. Who could hate him so much? Through the ceiling above
me, I hear Madeline screaming. If I’m going to act, I need to do it now. My phone is on the other side of the closet door.
A little voice in my head tells me to stay put, that if I just wait it out, I won’t have to worry about Wes’s wife any longer.
But if I don’t, I will forever be known as the girl who hid in the closet. And what if Wes finds out I could have saved his
unborn baby?
I’m damned if I do, damned if I don’t.