Page 59 of Wrecked
“Well, that’s the thing,son. I wouldn’t be prosecutinghim. I’d be prosecutingDiane. Chris is a lot smarter than most give him credit for. All those bank slips? The offshore account? The transfer paperwork from his company? All in Diane’s name. All with Diane’s signature. A signature he likely tricked her into, but I digress. No way to really prove that…unfortunately for Diane.”
My stomach drops. I’ll be away at school. Ellie would be here alone with Chris.
“Even though your lovely little girlfriend does not belong to Chris Hansel…he has custody of her on paper. She’d remain in his care while Diane rots in a prison. Because I don’t lose, Nathan, and shewillend up in prison.”
My head is spinning. I can’t let this happen.
“I’m curious, son. Do you know why Chris Hansel was separated from the military?”
I shake my head, terrified of the answer.
“Foul play. They couldn’tprovehe pushed Michael Nolan into the line of fire, but it washighlysuspected. They didn’t have enough proof to Court Martial him, so he took a plea deal. He was separated honorably before he could be tried for the additional complaints against him. Sexual assault of a minor, his Sergeant’s seventeen-year-old daughter. A complaint that was also going to be hard to prove.”
I’m going to be sick.
“Why would he push Michael into the line of fire?” I whisper, hardly able to believe what I’m hearing.
“Causing an accident, posing as her late husband’s war buddy? It would have been a brilliant plan to marry into a rich, powerful family. It’s too bad they disowned her. Now? He’s stuck in a marriage he doesn’t want, with kids that aren’t his, and he doesn’t have a legitimate penny to his name. That makes him a very dangerous man, Nathan. A dangerous man with an appetite for young girls.”
“What do you want?” I growl, knowing I’m going to hate what comes next.
“You’re going to leave that trashy girl before she leaves a permanent mark on the Westin name. You’re going to go to Columbia. And then, you’re going to finish law school and come back to my firm.”
“If I don’t?” I sneer, hating him more than I’ve ever hated him before.
“If you don’t? Diane will go to prison. Ellie will be left with Chris. They will lose everything they own. And should any charges come up against Chris? Any accusations from Ellie? I will be sure to defend him, and once again, I will win.”
We stare at each other for several minutes. I feel cold inside. Frozen. The only thing I know is that I will doanythingtoprotect Ellie. Even if that means hurting her. Even if that means…leaving her.
“Well? What’s it going to be, son?”
“I…I’m going to Columbia.” My voice no longer sounds like me. It’s empty, hollow.
“Put down the knife, Nathan.”
I do.
I don’t even brace myself for the first punch to my gut. I knew it was coming, but I can’t seem to care. I don’t brace for the next hit either. Instead, I embrace it all. I accept the hits as a well-deserved punishment for the pain I’m about to put my sweet Ellie through.
The ache is welcome, but I can’t feel it. I can’t feel a single blow. He’s wearing his rings, his watch, but I still don’t feel anything. I fall to the ground. Nathaniel kicks my face, my ribs, my head. I can sense the blood as it trickles down my face, my arms, my nose. I can feel my stomach start to churn, the nausea taking effect even though my body isn’t responding to the physical pain.
Nathaniel spits on my face. I don’t even bother to wipe it.
“Get rid of her by the end of the year.” He walks out of my room, slamming the door shut behind him. I roll to my side, still frozen, still a shell of my former self.
I pull myself up, walk over to my window…
And lock it.
CHAPTER 29
NATE (PRESENT)
Blistering heat beats down on the back of my neck, causing rivers of sweat to trickle into the waistband of my jeans. It’s a cruel taunt, as though the searing sun is mocking the freezing, sleepless night we had. Ellie’s petite body expelled entirely too much energy shivering into the early morning hours. I wrapped her small frame in my shirt and gave her as much of my body heat as I could, but it wasn’t enough to stop the chills.
I could feel her silent tears falling onto my chest all night, but she didn’t voice her discomfort. She just burrowed herself tightly against my body, fusing our skin as if we were one person. I’ve spent so many nights aching to have her that close again, craving the sensation of her body as she cuddles up against me, hitching her leg over my hip.The way we used to sleep.Her small, delicate hands would curl up between us as she rested her head under my chin, her sweet little breaths tickling my neck.
Last night was not a soft, sweet reminder of what we once had. It was a nightmare. One we can’t afford to suffer through again. Hypothermia is probably the least of our concerns. Notonly are we almost dangerously dehydrated, but we are also in desperate need of protein.
