Page 10 of Awakening the Wild
"Kevin, I can't impose on you."
“You’re not. The road’s clear so I had my buddy Jerry from the garage in town come and tow your car early this morning. He’ll take a look at it and give you a good deal on fixing it.”
“Oh good. That stupid car had been my sweet sixteen birthday present from my parents and I’ve had it ever since.”
He grimaced. “Mercedes last a long time, but not forever.”
“Well, it’s lasted this long. Thanks for doing that for me. I owe you one.”
“Put it on my tab for that website you’re going to build for me.”
The sharp ring of my cell phone cut me off. I glanced down to see Michael's name flashed on the screen.
I recoiled before I could hide my reaction.
"Don't answer it," Kevin said.
"He'll just keep calling. If I don't pick up, he'll—"
"Tonya." Kevin's voice was firm, commanding. "Don't. Answer. It."
But it was too late. My finger had already swiped across the screen.
"What do you want?" I asked, forcing my voice to sound cool and unconcerned. Meanwhile my insides were jiggling like jelly.
"Where are you?" His voice was annoyed. "I've been worried sick. When you didn't come home last night—"
"I'm not coming home."
"Don't be ridiculous. This little tantrum has gone on long enough. I've already talked to your parents, explained that you're having some kind of breakdown. They agree that you need help."
My parents. Of course he'd called them. Of course he'd made it sound like I was the problem.
"I'm not having a breakdown," I said, aware of Kevin's intense gaze on me. "I'm done, Michael. We're done. I told you that."
"You didn’t tell me anything. You texted it." His voice hardened slightly. "You can't survive without me. You know that. You're helpless on your own."
"I'm doing just fine."
"Are you? Because I've been tracking your car, and it looks like you're Vermont. What on earth are you doing there?"
Tracking me. Of course. He'd probably been monitoring my every move since I left.
"That's none of your business anymore."
"Everything about you is my business. You belong to me. The sooner you accept that, the easier this will be." His voice dropped to the silky tone that had once made me think he loved me. Now it just made my skin crawl. "Come home."
"No." The word came out stronger than I felt. "I don't want to see you."
"What you want is irrelevant. You're my fiancée."
"Ex-fiancée. I left the your ring on the bedside table.”
"A temporary misunderstanding. Don’t make me come after you."
The line went dead.
I stared at the phone in my trembling hands, feeling like the walls were closing in around me. He'd do it too. He’d track medown, drag me back to New York, and this time he'd make sure I never had another chance to leave.
