14. Julian
JULIAN
Ellie drops the phone like it’s burned her. “He’s been watching us.”
“I can’t.” Ellie is already moving, pulling on clothes. “You heard him. He’ll kill Miles.”
“And he’ll kill you if you go alone,” I argue, catching her wrist. “This is exactly what he wants—to isolate you.”
She pulls away. “I don’t have a choice! Miles may be my ex, but I can’t have his death on my conscience.”
“Then I’m coming with you.”
“No.” Her voice breaks. “I’ve already put you in danger just by being with you. I won’t risk your life too.”
I grab my own clothes. “That’s not your decision to make. We’re in this together.”
“You don’t understand what Rick is capable of,” she says, her eyes haunted. “He doesn’t just want to hurt me. He wants to destroy everything I care about.”
I cup her face in my hands, forcing her to look at me. “That’s exactly why I’m coming with you. I’m not letting you face him alone.”
“But—”
“No buts,” I interrupt. “I know you’re scared for Miles, and for me. But Rick is manipulating you, using your compassion against you. If we go, we go together.”
A tear slips down her cheek. “I can’t lose you.”
“You won’t.” I pull her close, feeling her heart racing against mine. “We’ll follow the police instructions. They’ll be close by. We just need to keep Rick talking until they arrive.”
She draws a shaky breath against my chest. “He’s smarter than you think. More dangerous.”
“Tell me what I need to know,” I say, grabbing my keys. “Everything about him, while we drive.”
Forty minutes later, we approach the turn-off for the lake.
The old boathouse sits at the far end, partially hidden by overgrown willows. I pull over before we reach the final bend.
“I’ll park here. We’ll walk the rest. Less chance of him hearing us approach.”
Ellie nods, her face pale but resolute. I reach into the glove compartment and pull out a glock.
“A gun?”
“I told you I’d protect you.”
I check my phone—the police are en route but still ten minutes out. “Remember, we just need to stall.”
We move through the trees, keeping low. The boathouse comes into view—weathered gray wood, half-collapsed roof, windows broken long ago. A car I don’t recognize is parked near the entrance.
“That’s Miles’s car,” Ellie whispers.
We approach through a broken window. I catch a glimpse of movement inside. Miles, slumped in a chair, hands behind his back. Blood trickles from his temple.
Rick paces in front of him, a hunting knife glinting in his hand. My stomach knots at the sight.
“Wait here,” I whisper to Ellie.
“No.” She grips my arm. “Together, remember?”
I hesitate, then nod. “Stay behind me.”
“Your time’s almost up, Miles. Think she’ll show? Or has she written you off completely?”
Miles’s reply is muffled, but defiant. I signal to Ellie to stay in the shadows as we edge closer.
“She’ll come,” Rick continues, twirling the knife. “She still feels responsible for you. It’s her greatest weakness—caring too much about people who don’t deserve it.”
My palm sweats against the grip of the gun.
“I’m here, Rick.” Ellie steps forward before I can stop her, her voice steady despite her fear. “Let Miles go.”
Rick spins around, his face splitting into a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. “Right on time. Always so punctual.”
I step out beside her, gun raised. “It’s over, Rick. Police are on their way.”
His eyes narrow, focusing on me with cold calculation. “The neighbor. How sweet. Did she tell you about us, about what we had?”
“There was never an ‘us’,” Ellie says. “You were my boss. That’s all.”
Rick’s laugh is hollow. “Is that what you told him? That I was just some creep who couldn’t take rejection? Tell him about the late nights, Ellie.
“The manipulation,” she counters. “The threats when I wouldn’t sleep with you.”
Miles groans, struggling against his restraints. Blood has dried in a dark streak down his face, but his eyes are alert now, fixed on Ellie with a mixture of fear and regret.
“Untie him,” I demand, keeping the gun steady.
Rick ignores me, focused entirely on Ellie. “You look good. Prison gave me plenty of time to remember every detail about you. The way you tuck your hair behind your ear when you’re nervous. Like now.”
Her hand drops quickly from her ear. “What do you want, Rick? Really?”
“What I’ve always wanted.” He takes a step toward her. “You. Us. A second chance.”
“There’s no second chance,” I interject. “Put down the knife.”
His eyes flick to me, dismissive. “This isn’t about you.”
“It is now,” I reply. “I’m making it about me.”
Rick’s expression darkens. “You have no idea what you are doing.”
He shifts his grip on the knife, blade glinting in the dusty light filtering through broken windows. “Do you know what happens to men who try to take what’s mine?”
“I’m not yours,” Ellie says, her voice stronger than before. “I never was.”
I keep the gun trained on him, but Rick doesn’t seem concerned. He’s too focused on Ellie, like a predator that’s finally cornered its prey.
“Lower your weapon,” Rick says without looking at me. “Or I’ll open Miles’s throat before you can pull the trigger.”
I don’t move. “You’ll be dead before you take a step.”
“Then we all lose.” His smile is chilling. “Is that what you want, Ellie? More blood on your hands?”
Miles eyes are wide, pleading.
“Put the gun down,” Ellie whispers to me. “Please.”
“Smart girl,” Rick nods. “Always the practical one.”
Every instinct screams against it, but I slowly lower the weapon. Not all the way—just enough to buy time. Where are those damn police?
“Kick it over,” Rick demands.
“No.” I hold my ground. “The knife first.”
He laughs. “You’re not in a position to negotiate.”
“Neither are you,” I counter. “Police are minutes away. You hurt anyone, and you’ll never see daylight again.”
Something flickers across his face—doubt, maybe. Or calculation.
“You know what I think?” Rick says, moving behind Miles, resting the knife against his neck. “I think Ellie needs to choose. Right now. Who lives, who dies.”
“Stop it,” Ellie’s voice breaks. “This isn’t a game.”
“Oh, but it is,” Rick says. “Life’s just one big game of choices. You chose to betray me. You chose him.” He gestures at me with his free hand. “Now choose again. Your ex-husband or your new boyfriend?”
“Don’t listen to him,” I tell her. “He’s trying to manipulate you.”
Rick presses the blade harder against Miles’s skin, drawing a thin line of blood. Miles whimpers.
“Ten seconds,” Rick says. “Or I choose for you.”
Ellie takes a step forward. “If I go with you, if I leave with you right now, will you let them both live?”
My heart stops. “Ellie, no.”
Rick’s eyes gleam with triumph. “Just you and me. Like it should have been.”
“Swear it,” she demands. “Swear, you’ll let them go unharmed.”
“I swear.” His voice is silky, poisonous. “Just come here.”
She takes another step forward, and I feel my world collapsing. “Ellie, he’ll kill you.”
“I know,” she says, not looking at me. “But I won’t let either of you die because of me.”
She’s three steps away from Rick now. Every muscle in my body tenses, ready to lunge forward the moment he moves that knife from Miles’s throat.
“That’s it,” Rick coaxes. “You always knew we belonged together.”
I catch a flicker of movement outside the window—a shadow passing quickly. The police? I need to keep him talking.
“She’s doing what you want,” I say, drawing his attention. “Let Miles go first.”
Rick’s eyes narrow. “You don’t make the rules here.”
“Neither do you,” Ellie says suddenly, stopping just out of his reach. “Not anymore.”
Something in her voice has changed—steel replacing fear. Rick notices it too; his expression falters.
“What game are you playing?” he asks.
“No game.” Ellie takes a deliberate step backward. “I’m done letting you control me through fear. I’m done running.”
Rick’s face contorts. “You promised?—”
“I promised nothing,” she cuts him off. “I asked if you would let them go, and you lied. Just like you always lie.”
His grip tightens on the knife. “You think you know me so well?”
“I know you never intended to let any of us walk out of here alive.”
I see another movement at the window—definitely someone outside. I need to keep Rick’s attention away from it.
“You’re going back to prison,” I tell him. “The only question is whether it’s for kidnapping or murder.”
Rick laughs, a hollow sound that echoes through the dilapidated boathouse. “If I’m going down, I’m not going alone.” His eyes lock onto Ellie. “We’ll go together, like Romeo and Juliet. More romantic that way, don’t you think?”
He drags Miles’s chair backward, keeping the knife at his throat while positioning himself away from the windows.
“Drop the gun,” he orders me. “All the way this time. Or I start carving.”
The distant wail of sirens reaches us. Rick’s head jerks toward the sound.
“Now!” I shout, diving forward as the back door crashes open.
Two officers burst in, weapons drawn. “Police! Drop the knife!”
Rick yanks Miles’s head back, blade pressing deeper. “Stay back or he dies!”
Everything happens in a blur of motion. I lunge for Rick’s knife hand. Ellie screams. Miles’s chair topples backward. The knife slashes air, then flesh—my arm erupts in searing pain.
Rick shoves me aside with surprising strength, lunging toward Ellie. I stagger but stay on my feet, blood streaming down my arm.
An officer tackles Rick from behind, slamming him to the splintered wooden floor. The knife skitters away, spinning across boards stained with my blood. Rick howls with rage, bucking against the officer’s weight as handcuffs click into place.
“Stay down!” the officer shouts, knee pressed between Rick’s shoulder blades.
I stumble toward Ellie, who’s rushing to Miles. Her hands work frantically at the duct tape binding his wrists while another officer helps right the overturned chair. Miles’s eyes are wide, darting between Rick and Ellie, his chest heaving with panicked breaths.