Page 5 of The Amendment

“How long have you known?” I asked, running a hand through my hair. I needed to do damage control, but I had no idea how to. How much did she know? Was there any use trying to lie or cover it up?

“How long has it been going on?” she retorted.

“Ainsley, this isn’t some game. What you’ve done—”

Her jaw dropped open. “WhatI’vedone? Oh, that’s rich coming from you. All I’ve done is clean up your mess again and again.” She pounded her fist on the table. “And, frankly, I’m tired of it.”

“So, what are you saying? Are you going to turn mein?” My blood ran cold at the thought. She was manipulative, but she wasn’t evil…was she? I couldn’t believe she’d actually go to the police.

She scoffed. “And let our children find out what you’ve done? Our community?” I watched as her hands folded in front of her carefully, her long, thin fingers gracefully intertwined. “No, I won’t be doing that. Besides, from here on out, there will be nothing to tell me that I won’t already know.”

“Meaning what?”

“Why were you going into the bag, Peter? What did you do now?”

My stomach clenched. “I—nothing.”

“You only go into that room, into that bag, when you’ve hurt someone new. So, who was she? How far did you go?”

She was asking me about the darkest moments of my life so blatantly. It was painful and surreal, knowing the thing I’d tried to keep hidden for so long—the thing I’d thought Ihadkept hidden—wasn’t hidden at all. But rather, she’d known all along.

I should’ve known. Ainsley was always one step ahead of me.

She always knew.

Always.

“Ainsley, please, I didn’t… I didn’t do anything. I won’t. I don’t know what you think you—” I was breathless, unable to meet her eye. Illiana’s pearl bracelet still rested in my pocket.

“I can find out, you know. But it’s better if you tell me.”

I wanted to ask how she could find out, but in truth, itdidn’t matter. She wasn’t bluffing, and we both knew it. “I’m not the same man I was.”

“You’re a killer, Peter.” She spat it out, finally laying the truth on the table. “A rapist. A liar.A monster.You hurt people. You’ve hurt me.”

I rested my face in my palms, tears stinging my eyes. “I don’t mean to do it.”

“Which part?”

“Any of it!”

She shoved back from the table, stalking across the room toward the pitcher of lemonade she’d made just hours before. She pulled a bottle of vodka from the shelf above the refrigerator and added it to her drink. “It’s not like you tripped and fell into it. Like they had a job fair and you didn’t know what you were signing up for. You can never take responsibility for anything, can you?”

“You don’t understand—”

“No, here’s what I understand: you meant to do it. You always mean to do it. The first time I caught you was when Maisy was a baby.”

“What?” It wasn’t possible. How could she have looked me in the eyes all this time, knowing what she knew?

“You were supposed to be going out with Seth for the night, but when I called over to see if Glennon wanted to visit, she said she was watching some new documentarywith Seth. I knew you’d lied. So, the next time you said you were going out, I followed you.” She made her way back to the table and took a seat, and I wondered if my face looked as pale as it felt. I was sure I was going to pass out.

“I thought you were having an affair. I watched you hitting on a woman in a bar. Here I was, still recoveringfrom childbirth, and you were out on a date. But, just before I started to confront you, I watched you slip something in her drink.” She sprinkled her fingers over her own drink, acting out my motions.

Maybe I wouldn’t pass out, but I was certain I was going to be sick.

“Ainsley, I—” She waited, staring at me suspiciously, but we both knew there was nothing I could say that would make this better. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“I felt you pulling away from me back then. I knew something wasn’t right. But I never thought… I never dreamed you could be…” She couldn’t bring herself to say it again. Lifting the glass to her lips, she took another sip. “By the time I saw you for who you were, it was too late. I had three babies with you. We had a life. A home. Friends. I couldn’t just throw that all away. I thought if I did more, if I tried harder, that you would realize what you had. But you never did. Sometimes we’d go months, years even, when things felt okay. But then, you’d start sneaking around again, start spacing out, lying. No matter what I did, it was never enough to bring you back to me.”

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