Page 86 of His Loving Wife

“The world wants to pull you away from each other. This is your father’s way of bringing you back,” he continues to ramble, and yet I’m not convinced he’s speaking to any of us directly. I believe he’s talking to himself, appeasing his own guilt over the things he’s done.

“What do we do now?” Andrew asks.

“What needs to be done. You’ve made it to this point. I understand how frightening it can be.” He rests both of his hands on Andrew’s shoulders. “This is the bravest choice you can make for your family. They need you now more than ever.”

Andrew nods, his acquiescence making me wince. I look to the children, still clinging to each other in the cold rain, then back at Vincent.

“And what about you?” I shout against the wind.

He looks over me to Andrew, addressing his answer to him. “You’ll have to do this part on your own.”

There’s a cabinet to his left. Inside, are the emergency life jackets and a floatation device. We’re maybe a mile away from shore, the dock still visible. He’s going to leave us here, return to whatever life he felt he deserved once he got his family out of the way.

“Maybe we could all go back,” Andrew says, his voice catching. “Maybe this isn’t what we need after all.”

Vincent’s posture straightens. “After the sacrifices of all the others? After Cal. After my own family. And Trent is relying on us, too. You can’t back out now without throwing all that away.”

“I love them.”

Vincent kneels down in front of Andrew. “Then follow through. You owe it to us. You owe it to yourself.”

He stands, taking a confident turn back to the floatation devices.

“Dad,” Willow calls outs, her first words since entering the boat. “Please, don’t do this.”

She understands what is happening now, that her own father intends to hurt her, and it’s heartbreaking. Not only for me, but for Andrew, too. He winces, as though physically pained. It’s her words, her palpable terror, that inspire him to act.

He stands, lunging toward Vincent. Andrew’s strength is no match for his adversary. Vincent shuffles to the left, knocking Andrew to the ground with one steady swing.

“Don’t lose faith now,” he says. “My God, Andrew. Be a man.”

But Andrew doesn’t give up. He stands again, this time wrapping his arms around Vincent’s middle in an attempt to tackle him. Vincent begins pounding onto Andrew’s back, but he holds tight, refusing to let go.

Seeing that Vincent is distracted, I scan the deck for the heaviest object I can find. There’s a miniature fire extinguisher—it’s not the size of something you might find in a school or office building, but it’s made of the same steel. Using both hands, I whack Vincent in the back of the neck.

His right hand reaches to his neck, while his left arm springs out to grab me. I step back, then suddenly Andrew is between us, blocking Vincent’s grasp. The two men struggle, Vincent’s strength overwhelming, but Andrew manages to get a few hits in. When they turn, I lift the weapon over my head again, slamming it hard onto the top of his head. This time, the hit breaks the skin, and there’s a gash of blood across his skull.

When Vincent pulls his fingers away from the second wound, he sees the blood. His eyes bulge, as though he can’t quite believe it. I take this moment of uncertainty to push him closer to the edge. He’s off balance, the loss of blood surely dulling his senses.

Andrew follows suit, the two of us pushing the massive man towards the side. The deck is slippery, causing all three of us to slip and slide. Finally, Andrew picks up the fire extinguisher. He delivers one final hit to Vincent. It’s enough to make him go limp. My body almost collapses in relief, but I can’t fully relax until he’s off the boat. Together, Andrew and I hoist his body to the boat’s edge. It’s a difficult task, considering his size, coupled with the fear that at any moment he might reanimate and start fighting back.

After what feels like several minutes, most of Vincent’s body hangs over the boat’s ledge. Together, Andrew and I give him a final push. We watch as his body disappears into the deep.

Chapter 48

Now

For a few seconds, I stare at the water, waiting for Vincent to break through the surface. Like I’m in some horrible movie where the villain refuses to die. That doesn’t happen. My fears aren’t immediately settled, though. We’re still at sea in the middle of this horrendous storm. The skies above are an eerie shade of gray bordering on green, and the waves seem to grow in intensity with each passing minute.

“Is he gone?”

It’s Noah’s voice I hear. Immediately, I scramble to the other side of the boat. For a brief moment, I feel peace, holding both my children in my arms. Then I lock eyes with Andrew. He helped me overpower Vincent, but it’s difficult to know what he’s thinking. Whether or not we should still be afraid. I don’t have time to retaliate against him. All that matters is keeping the children safe. We’ve made it through one danger, now we’re onto the next.

“The keys,” Andrew says, his voice soaked with defeat. “They’re gone.”

“What do you mean they’re gone?”

“Vincent put them in his pocket when he killed the engine, and he’s…”

---