Page 21 of Reclaiming Izabel

“You knew this would happen. This is Izabel we’re talking about.”

“I can fix this. She let me in the house at least.”

“That’s good.”

“I destroyed her trust.” My voice grew hoarse.

“Listen, man, we knew you’d have a fight on your hands. The divorce rate among SEALs is ninety-five percent and yet both of you had a great marriage.”

“Until I betrayed our vows.”

Hank sighed. “Yeah, well, ‘for better or worse’ and ‘until death do us part’ hardly apply in this situation.”

I grunted. “She’s alive. That’s all that matters. Looks like I’ll have to grovel.”

Hank chuckled. “Wish I was there to see it.”

“I hope Viktor figures out who our leak is. I can’t wait to get out of the shadows.”

“You think you’ll be running into someone you know in Virginia Beach?”

“I’ll worry about that when the time comes, but I wasn’t waiting another moment to see Izabel.” Especially with another man sniffing around.

“Shit, Izabel is calling my phone. Later,” Hank muttered and hung up.

I stared at my phone, and then up the stairs where my wife had disappeared.

chapter

six

Izabel

I didn’t knowhow my legs managed to scale the stairs. Fueled by adrenaline, I supposed. By anger. I was so, so angry. I entered my bedroom and shut the door. Then I leaned against it, letting gravity take me to the floor as whatever strength I had finally deserted me.

Two fierce and opposing emotions drained the strength from my body.

Elation that Drake was alive.

White-hot fury at his betrayal and what he had done to our marriage.

The agony in my chest bled with the pain of a reopened wound.

And yet guilt ate at me.

The scars on his neck…my fingers wanted to touch them. A part of me that loved my husband wanted to ask what had happened.

But he died, a resentful voice whispered.

Tired of the battle inside me, I pushed up from the floor and called Hank.

My phone rang a few times before he answered. There was no mistaking the hesitation in his voice.

“Izabel.”

“You knew.”

“I knew.”

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