Page 24 of Merciless King

“At the very least, let me help you?—”

“I don’t need your help, Elio. I can take care of myself."

I stare at Piper, my dream dying again.

“What we had is dead.”

How can she say that? “No. You can tell me to take a hike, but you can’t dismiss what is between us.”

“I'm married. I have a daughter. My life is here, with Gabriel."

Murderous jealousy fills me. “I can give you everything you want, and you still want a man who hurts you?—”

“You’re no better.”

If she drove a stake through my heart, it wouldn’t hurt as much as those words. “Piper, don't do this.”

She shakes her head, her voice barely above a whisper. "It's too late, Elio. I made my choice a long time ago. You need to go and stay away from me."

I want to argue, to tell her that it's never too late to change her life, but the haunted look in her eyes stops me. I want to pull her into my arms and make her feel the truth of feelings. Something is fucked up here, and I might walk away now, but I’m sure as hell going to do whatever needs to be done to keep her and her child safe.

“Please,” I ask one more time. "Let me help you. I can't just leave you here, not like this."

She stares at me in an attempt to be strong, but underneath I see anguish. "You have to. I… I made a mistake letting you back into my life. I never should have given in to you."

Her words feel like a punch to the gut, and I have to fight to keep my composure. “Don’t say that.”

“I don't want you in my life. I need you to leave, now."

Her tone is final, and I know there's no arguing with her. Defeated, I nod. “Okay. If that's what you want, I'll go."

I turn to leave, my heart shattering. But I can't bring myself to walk away, not without one last plea. “Promise me you’ll be safe. Call me if you need anything?—”

“I won’t.” She averts her gaze. "I'll be fine. Just go, and don't come back."

I linger for a moment, desperate to change her mind, but she opens the door to let me out.

I turn and make my way to the porch, pausing only to glance back at her one last time. "I love you, Piper. Always."

Her breath hitches, but she doesn’t respond. Instead, she shuts the door.

I stand on the porch, my mind racing as I try to make sense of what just happened. Piper is in trouble. That much is clear. And she's pushing me away, denying what’s between us. Okay, so maybe I have to accept that she doesn't want me. But she’s also refusing to let me help her. She has to know that I can protect her. Maybe I should have been clear that I could save her without expecting anything in return.

The sound of the deadbolt sliding into place tells me I won't have the opportunity to say any more today. But this isn't over. I may be leaving her house, but I'm not giving up. I'll find a way to protect her, to get her and her daughter to safety.

11

PIPER

Iwatch Elio leave, my emotions a tumultuous mix of grief, confusion, anger. As soon as he's out of sight, I break down in tears. The pain I feel is overwhelming. Even after all these years, Elio still has the power to shake me to my core. Each time he begged me to let him help me, saying he’d treat me well, saying he loved me, all I wanted to do was let him. But I couldn’t. Elio isn’t my answer. His world isn’t any safer. And I can’t trust him.

As I work through all the emotions, anger rises to the top. I'm furious with him for showing up here thinking he can waltz back in and pick up where we left off. As if it's that simple? He’d abandoned me and Elysse once before. I’d be an idiot to give him the opportunity to do it again.

And yet, a part of me still yearns for him. The way he looks at me, like I’m the center of his world, almost makes me forget what he did. Oh, hell, I did forget yesterday and let myself succumb to his charm. I hate myself for giving in to that temptation, for betraying the vows I made to Gabriel.

I hope Elio got the message and will stay away. Even as I tell myself that, the thought of never seeing him again, of his walking out of my life for good, fills me with sadness. Why couldn't Elio have fought for me and Elysse eight years ago?

The memory of Elio’s promise to me and the aftermath floods back. I was so young, so naive, believing that our love could conquer anything. Little did I know that it would all come crashing down a day later.

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