Page 49 of His

“So did I.”

“So then . . . who’s the father?”

The emails flash behind my eyes.

I can’t wait to see you. I can’t stop thinking about you or what our life will be like when we’re finally together.

Love, Valerie

Soon. I miss you too. The plan is almost in place. Be patient, we’ll be together again soon. I love you so much.

Carlos

Chloe was not my child.

She was Carlos’s child.

Thirty-One

Astor

The tree bark spirals into the air as I slam my fist in the trunk. Over, and over, and over.

I want to kill Valerie. I want to go into the bedroom, wrap my hands around her skinny, pale neck, squeeze the air from her lungs and spit in her face as she takes her last breath.

My knuckle splits, igniting a fresh burst of fury through my veins. Instead of letting up, I hit harder, faster, a wild rage driving me in a way I haven’t felt in years.

Sweat rolls down the side of my face, my chest heaves to pull in oxygen as my heart hammers against my ribcage.

When another knuckle splits, I pull back and double over, catching my breath.

Once the world stops spinning around me, I straighten and look back at the house, barely visible through the trees.

“Go take a long walk to cool off while I examine Valerie,” Squire demanded once he was certain I wasn’t going to have another panic attack. Then he said, “and I highly recommend not bringing this up to her until she’s stable.”

Not bring this up to her? It will take an act of God to not confront my wife about deceiving me into believing she was pregnant with my child while secretly having my arch enemy’s baby.

Sabine is right. Valerie played me then, and is playing me now. She’s nothing but a gold-digging, lying whore and it’s my fault I didn’t see it.

Staring at the beach house, fantasies of Valerie’s bloody, broken body flash behind my eyes. I imagine all the ways I could kill her and make it look like an accident. Her voice materializes in my head, begging me to stop, to spare her life right before I take it in the most savage, brutal way.

The corner of my lip curves.

I feel the monster inside me begin to awaken. The one who almost beat a man to death for doing nothing more than speaking to Sabine.

What a fool I was to think I could change. What a fool I was to think that I could tame the monster.

He never left. He’s right here, front and center once again.

And it feels good.

Thirty-Two

Brittney

I’m staring out the window when Sabine walks into the living room.

I turn away and begin wringing my hands. “Sorry. Jackie is with Mrs. Stone. Dr. Squire just left.”

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