Chapter 14 Breaking Point #2
I knew exactly what kind of choice men like Thomas Reed offered.
Choices that weren't choices at all.
Ultimatums dressed as concern.
"What happened?"
Silence.
Then a short laugh.
Bitter.
Painful.
"He wants me to pick my future."
I closed my eyes.
Hell.
The kid sounded hurt.
Really hurt.
The realization settled heavily inside my chest.
Not because it surprised me.
Because I'd spent weeks watching this exact future approach.
The investigator.
The photographs.
The campaign.
Everything had been leading here.
And somehow Elliot was paying the price.
Not me.
Him.
Always him.
"I'll be there in twenty minutes."
Then the line went dead.
I remained standing in the office.
Motionless.
Listening to the silence.
Twenty minutes.
That was how long I had.
Twenty minutes before Elliot walked through that door.
Twenty minutes before I made the hardest decision of my life.
Because somewhere during the drive back from his father's house, Elliot would be thinking about us.
About fighting.
About surviving.
About staying together.
And all I could think about was everything he was losing.
The realization sat like a knife beneath my ribs.
Because for the first time, Senator Reed's words weren't entirely wrong.
I hated admitting it.
Despised it.
Yet the truth remained.
Elliot had a future.
A bright one.
Publishing.
Graduation.
Opportunities.
Dreams.
Everything still waiting for him.
What did I have?
A garage.
A criminal record.
Enemies who refused to stay buried.
The Steel Vipers.
The photographs.
A past that kept finding ways to poison the present.
The answer felt obvious.
Painfully obvious.
The apartment suddenly felt too small.
Too quiet.
I walked downstairs.
Then back upstairs.
Then downstairs again.
Restless energy filled every corner of my body.
Because deep down, I already knew what I was going to do.
I just didn't know how to survive it.
Twenty-three minutes later, a car pulled into the lot.
Three minutes late.
Not that I was counting.
The driver's door opened.
Elliot stepped out.
The sight immediately punched all the air from my lungs.
His eyes were red.
His expression exhausted.
Yet determination still burned beneath the hurt.
God.
I loved him.
The realization arrived instantly.
As strong as ever.
Maybe stronger.
Which was exactly why I had to do this.
Elliot crossed the lot quickly.
The office door slammed open.
Then shut.
The silence that followed felt enormous.
For several seconds, we simply stared at each other.
Neither speaking.
Neither moving.
Finally, Elliot broke first.
"I told him."
My chest tightened.
"Told him what?"
"That I loved you."
The words hit like a freight train.
Raw.
Honest.
Perfect.
I nearly broke right there.
Almost.
The image flashed through my mind immediately.
Elliot standing in front of his father.
Choosing me.
Fighting for me.
Losing things because of me.
The thought made me sick.
"What happened?"
The question sounded rough.
Even to me.
Elliot laughed.
Another bitter sound.
"He threatened everything."
Of course he did.
The answer surprised nobody.
"My future."
Another laugh.
"My career."
His voice cracked slightly.
"My family."
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Meaningful.
Because suddenly the consequences weren't theoretical anymore.
They were real.
And standing directly in front of me.
Elliot took a step closer.
Then another.
The determination in his eyes felt terrifying.
Because I already knew what he was going to say.
And I already knew I couldn't let him.
"I chose you."
There it was.
The words I'd dreamed about hearing.
The words that should have made me happy.
Instead, they shattered something inside me.
Because he said them like a victory.
And all I could see was sacrifice.
Loss.
Damage.
The cost.
The terrible cost.
"Elliot."
My voice sounded broken.
He shook his head.
"No."
His eyes shone.
Filled with emotion.
Filled with love.
Filled with belief.
The sight nearly destroyed me.
"I don't care about any of it."
The confession came quickly now.
Passionately.
"Not if it means losing you."
I looked away.
Couldn't bear it.
Because every word made leaving harder.
Every word made staying impossible.
The realization settled with brutal certainty.
If I let this continue, he'd keep sacrificing.
Keep fighting.
Keep bleeding.
And eventually there'd be nothing left.
Not because he wasn't strong enough.
Because loving me required too much.
The thought hurt more than anything I'd ever experienced.
Including prison.
Including grief.
Including loss.
"Elliot."
I interrupted him.
Firmly this time.
He stopped talking.
The office fell silent.
I took a breath.
Then another.
Neither helped.
Nothing could help.
Not now.
The decision was already made.
"You need to leave."
The words landed between us.
Sharp.
Immediate.
Wrong.
Elliot blinked.
"What?"
The confusion in his voice nearly broke my resolve.
Nearly.
I forced myself forward.
One final push.
One final lie.
"This was a mistake."
The silence that followed felt endless.
Completely endless.
Because both of us knew it wasn't true.
The hurt appeared instantly.
Raw.
Visible.
Unavoidable.
Still, I continued.
Because stopping meant surrender.
And surrender meant watching him destroy his future for me.
"I should've ended this weeks ago."
Every word tasted like poison.
Yet I kept going.
"I got carried away."
The lie deepened.
Growing uglier.
Crueler.
Necessary.
Elliot stared at me.
Not speaking.
Not moving.
The disbelief in his eyes hurt more than anger ever could.
Finally, he laughed.
A single broken sound.
"You don't mean that."
God.
I wished he would stop making this harder.
The problem was that he knew me.
Really knew me.
Too well.
Which meant he could see every crack.
Every hesitation.
Every weakness.
I hardened my expression.
Built walls.
Returned to the version of myself I'd spent years hiding behind.
Cold.
Distant.
Untouchable.
"Yes."
The lie came easier this time.
That frightened me.
"Jaxon."
My name sounded like a plea.
Like hope.
Like love.
I crushed all three.
"You were right about one thing."
The words came slowly.
Deliberately.
"I don't belong in your future."
His face went white.
The reaction nearly made me take everything back.
Nearly.
Then I remembered Senator Reed.
The campaign.
The club.
The photographs.
The danger.
The choice became easier.
"I never will."
Silence.
Heavy.
Absolute.
For several seconds, neither of us moved.
Then I delivered the final blow.
The one I knew would work.
The one guaranteed to make him leave.
"You need to grow up, Elliot."
The words hit exactly as intended.
Shock.
Pain.
Disbelief.
The expression that followed would haunt me for the rest of my life.
Because I watched his heart break.
Actually watched it.
Right there in front of me.
And I was the one holding the knife.
For a long moment, he simply stared.
Searching my face.
Looking for something.
The truth.
A crack.
A reason to stay.
I gave him nothing.
Because if I looked away, I'd fail.
If I softened, I'd fail.
If I admitted I loved him, I'd fail.
And failure wasn't an option.
Not this time.
Finally, Elliot nodded once.
A small movement.
Devastating.
Understanding settled across his face.
Not acceptance.
Understanding.
He believed me.
The realization nearly dropped me to my knees.
Without another word, he turned.
Walked toward the door.
Each step felt like a gunshot.
The office door opened.
Then closed.
Silence returned.
Complete.
Unforgiving.
I stood alone in the garage.
Motionless.
Unable to breathe.
Unable to think.
Because the second Elliot disappeared, every lie collapsed beneath the weight of the truth.
I hadn't protected him.
I'd destroyed him.
And as darkness settled over Kane Customs, I finally understood something terrible.
Sometimes being the villain wasn't the hard part.
The hard part was living with it afterward.
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