Page 21 of Jericho

My heart skips a fucking beat, and I swear this woman will either be the death of me or I'll end up a fucking vegetable after a goddamn stroke.

It seems when she's backed into a corner, she'll do whatever manipulative tactics she can use in order for her to get her way.

Chapter 12

Aspen

I jerk my head back, pushing all my weight into the back of the armchair I'm sitting in when he rushes across the room and leans down into my face.

The man I knew from years ago wouldn't frighten me, but the warning in my head is assuring me this man was no longer the one I once thought I knew.

"You manipulative fucking bitch," he growls, his scarred cheek twitching with rage and irritation as he glares down at me. "We're going to help the fucking kid despite you. But there's no fucking point in lying about him."

I swallow again, the lump that formed before I told my biggest secret refusing to clear. I look up at him. This is the only damn truth I have.

"I'm not lying."

I don't flinch when he moves in so close I can feel the warmth of his breath on my face. Even thinking he was dead, I've imagined telling him he's Eli's father a million times, but rage and barely withheld violence was never what I pictured when he learned the news.

His lip twitches as if he still doesn't believe me.

"I found out I was pregnant a week after Damien dragged you from the room." I pull my head back farther so I can dash away the tears leaking down my cheeks without coming into contact with him. "I knew he'd kill our child and probably me if he found out, so I lied. I had the wedding moved up, and when I went into labor, I had the help of a nurse to lie for me."

His eyes dart between mine, his beautiful green irises still trying to figure out if I'm lying to him.

"Can you imagine what I've been through?" I growl when he doesn't seem to believe me but also refuses to back down and give me some space.

"What you've been through?" he snaps, standing to his full height and pointing at the scar on his face. "Look at my fucking face, Peach!"

I hate that we have an audience. This isn't something that we should have to go through with witnesses. If he wasn't yelling at me, and if there weren't two other men in the room, making him think he has to act a certain way, I'd tell him how incredibly handsome he was even with the scar on his face. But I can't whisper those words to him. He has to prove how much of a man he is right now, and that means there's no way for me to win this argument.

"How in the world would he ever believe Eli was his?" he argues.

"Because I had to consummate our fucking marriage!" I scream, hating that he stayed in the shadows while I suffered under Damien all these years. "He wanted children very early. He wanted to cement his place in the family in case Dad ever tried to take away what he was promised. He never missed a fucking night trying to make sure I was pregnant as quickly as possible."

"Jesus fuck," Samuel whispers, but his reaction to what I've had to endure doesn't deserve recognition.

I watch Luke's face turn from rage to disgust as he begins to fully understand what I've told him.

"You may never be able to forgive me for what I didn't do that day, but our son is innocent. You need to let me go so I can ensure that he's safe."

He scoffs as if my words mean nothing. "We'll make sure you and the boy have a new identity, and you can live out the rest of your days without having to worry about Damien Gaines."

I shake my head. He can't guarantee anything. He doesn't have any clue just how willing Damien is to hurt everyone around him until he gets the information he wants. He'll leave a trail of bodies behind him in his quest to find us, and I can't have that on my conscience.

"Jericho?"

I snap my eyes at the other man, the one who patted me down outside to check me for weapons. He's been mostly silent since we came inside. I don't have to be an expert on watching people to know that Luke, or should I say Jericho, is the one calling the shots right now.

The man I once knew looks at the other guy, and my heart kicks up several notches when he takes the phone from him. I didn't hear the thing ring, but it's very possible I was either yelling too loudly or it was on silent.

Jericho keeps his eyes on me as he listens to whoever is on the other line, and I see the change in him within seconds.

Whatever he's hearing is bad news, and despite the years between us, I know him enough to know when he's trying to hide something from me.

"What?" I snap, feeling a little hysterical when he keeps his eyes locked on me but doesn't answer my question.

"Let me know what you find out," he growls before shoving the phone back in the other man's direction.

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