“What are you doing?”
“We’re going. Leaving now.”
I shook my head. “We can’t just leave.”
“Yes, we can, and we are.” He pulled open the dresser, grabbing handfuls of stuff, paying no attention to what it was. “It’s the only way I can protect you.”
I shook my head and set my hands on my hips, digging my heels into the floor. “There has to be another way.”
“Unless Vincent Marconi drops dead, there isn’t.”
“It could happen.”
His jaw flexed, teeth mashing together. “I’m not taking a chance on if.”
“Nate, we need to form a plan. We can’t just take off.”
“Damn it! Why won’t you f**king listen to me?”
“Because you’re being unreasonable.” My fingers flexed against my hips.
“No, I’m not.” The volume of his voice increased, almost to the point of yelling. His eyes hardened. “I’ve warned you about my past.”
“You’re just going to leave your family?”
His motions halted. He stood stone still for a moment, then grabbed my phone from his pocket and dialed a number.
“Mom, I need you to pack your bags… The Marconi… Mom, please don’t argue.”
I snatched the phone from his hands. “Sarah, we’ll call you back.”
I forced down my own anxiety as I stared at my husband’s frantic behavior.
“I’ll call Darren, you work on calming him.” The worry in her voice could be heard
I nodded, not that she could see. “Talk to you soon.”
I hung up and walked over to him. He was shaking violently as he stuffed clothing into the cases.
“Baby, you need to calm down,” I said in a soothing tone, my fingers running through his hair. “We need to work out a plan.”
His head snapped toward me. “This is serious. We have to leave. I have to get you out of here. I can’t let them… I won’t let them hurt you.”
“Slow down. Take a deep breath. Please.”
“No!” he shouted and turned to me, his eyes beseeching me to understand. “This wasn’t a warning. Everything before was, but Vincent himself seeking me out was his way of saying goodbye, of letting me know that we’re dead. He wanted to see you, see what he was going to take from me. He is going to kill us, Lila! We have to leave now!”
CHAPTER 26
I vibrated with anger and fear as I stared at Nathan. We weren’t right. There was an element that was off in both of us. We weren’t working together as a unit, as a family, and it was hurting us.
I picked up a shoe he’d just dumped into the suitcase and hurled it against the wall. “No. This ends now. Stop with the bullshit!”
He stopped packing and looked at me. “Bullshit?”
“Yes. Bullshit.” I was seething. Not working together made us weaker, and it’d become obvious we were falling apart because of it. “You’ve kept things from me. I’ve kept things from you, as well. We can’t do that, not now. Especially not in this moment.”
He blinked at me, stunned. “What are you keeping from me?”
“What are you keeping from me? I’m your wife, remember? Partner in this life we have together, including impending doom.”
He stepped forward, towering over me, and snarled. “What are you keeping from me?”
I blew out a breath and bit my bottom lip before looking him in the eye, my jaw jutting forward. “I knew Marconi was on his way in town this morning.”
“How?” His voice was flat, even, and a shiver ran through me.
“Noah.”
His face scrunched, and he lashed out, grabbing the nearest thing—a pillow—and tossing it across the room, screaming.
“You didn’t tell me? I missed a call from Noah around eight, but I had no idea…” He shook his head. “Why the f**k didn’t you tell me?”
I slumped down onto the edge of the bed. “You would’ve freaked out this morning. I was waiting until after work, trying to form a plan, but he’s already here.”
“We could’ve been gone hours ago.” He threw his hands up and stomped away, stopping in front of the bathroom door, his back turned. “How did Noah contact you?”
I closed my eyes and braced myself for his rage. “On a disposable phone he bought me a month ago. He’s been keeping me up to date as well as keeping tabs on us.”
He bent forward, then slammed his hands against the door frame. When he turned to me, I jumped at the fire in his eyes.
“A month? This has been going on for a month and neither of you mentioned it to me? I’ve f**king talked to Noah multiple times, and he never said a word.”
I stared at him and sighed. “You’ve been so on edge. Between the false positive and giving Tom the file, I’ve had to walk on eggshells and do everything I could to keep you relaxed.”
He glared at me, and icy dread flooded my system. It was anger, and not in a good way. “So, my wife has been placating me like a f**king child.”
I jumped up from the bed and stalked forward, pushing against his chest. “You wake up screaming every night! Your moods are so heightened and change so fast, I can’t keep up, so I keep even.”
Anger fled from him, replaced by something I couldn’t identify, but I knew it was a jumbled mess of turmoil. His hands ran through his hair, then down to his neck, pulling.
“I never should’ve proposed. We never should’ve gotten married.”
I flinched, recoiling back as if he’d slapped me. He looked up, his eyes empty. My mouth opened and tears began to gather in my eyes. My chest was tight, and I reached behind me, searching for the bed. Stability as my world threatened to collapse around me. His face morphed, eyes wide in panic as he lurched toward me, grabbing my arms.
“No, Honeybear, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way.”
“What way am I supposed to take it?” My voice was strained, forcing the overpowering emotions from pouring out of me. Everything was upside down.
His eyes scrunched closed, teeth bared as he squeezed me tighter.
“I somehow thought I wasn’t a bother to him any longer. All our therapy toned down my fears, and I forgot and was happy. I convinced myself we could have a future, a family, and grow old together.” My heart broke at the tortured expression on his face. “Everything that consumes me is you, and I want you in every way, but the one thing I don’t want is you hurt because of me. Marrying you tells them how much you mean to me. They can take you away from me.”
“We’re going. Leaving now.”
I shook my head. “We can’t just leave.”
“Yes, we can, and we are.” He pulled open the dresser, grabbing handfuls of stuff, paying no attention to what it was. “It’s the only way I can protect you.”
I shook my head and set my hands on my hips, digging my heels into the floor. “There has to be another way.”
“Unless Vincent Marconi drops dead, there isn’t.”
“It could happen.”
His jaw flexed, teeth mashing together. “I’m not taking a chance on if.”
“Nate, we need to form a plan. We can’t just take off.”
“Damn it! Why won’t you f**king listen to me?”
“Because you’re being unreasonable.” My fingers flexed against my hips.
“No, I’m not.” The volume of his voice increased, almost to the point of yelling. His eyes hardened. “I’ve warned you about my past.”
“You’re just going to leave your family?”
His motions halted. He stood stone still for a moment, then grabbed my phone from his pocket and dialed a number.
“Mom, I need you to pack your bags… The Marconi… Mom, please don’t argue.”
I snatched the phone from his hands. “Sarah, we’ll call you back.”
I forced down my own anxiety as I stared at my husband’s frantic behavior.
“I’ll call Darren, you work on calming him.” The worry in her voice could be heard
I nodded, not that she could see. “Talk to you soon.”
I hung up and walked over to him. He was shaking violently as he stuffed clothing into the cases.
“Baby, you need to calm down,” I said in a soothing tone, my fingers running through his hair. “We need to work out a plan.”
His head snapped toward me. “This is serious. We have to leave. I have to get you out of here. I can’t let them… I won’t let them hurt you.”
“Slow down. Take a deep breath. Please.”
“No!” he shouted and turned to me, his eyes beseeching me to understand. “This wasn’t a warning. Everything before was, but Vincent himself seeking me out was his way of saying goodbye, of letting me know that we’re dead. He wanted to see you, see what he was going to take from me. He is going to kill us, Lila! We have to leave now!”
CHAPTER 26
I vibrated with anger and fear as I stared at Nathan. We weren’t right. There was an element that was off in both of us. We weren’t working together as a unit, as a family, and it was hurting us.
I picked up a shoe he’d just dumped into the suitcase and hurled it against the wall. “No. This ends now. Stop with the bullshit!”
He stopped packing and looked at me. “Bullshit?”
“Yes. Bullshit.” I was seething. Not working together made us weaker, and it’d become obvious we were falling apart because of it. “You’ve kept things from me. I’ve kept things from you, as well. We can’t do that, not now. Especially not in this moment.”
He blinked at me, stunned. “What are you keeping from me?”
“What are you keeping from me? I’m your wife, remember? Partner in this life we have together, including impending doom.”
He stepped forward, towering over me, and snarled. “What are you keeping from me?”
I blew out a breath and bit my bottom lip before looking him in the eye, my jaw jutting forward. “I knew Marconi was on his way in town this morning.”
“How?” His voice was flat, even, and a shiver ran through me.
“Noah.”
His face scrunched, and he lashed out, grabbing the nearest thing—a pillow—and tossing it across the room, screaming.
“You didn’t tell me? I missed a call from Noah around eight, but I had no idea…” He shook his head. “Why the f**k didn’t you tell me?”
I slumped down onto the edge of the bed. “You would’ve freaked out this morning. I was waiting until after work, trying to form a plan, but he’s already here.”
“We could’ve been gone hours ago.” He threw his hands up and stomped away, stopping in front of the bathroom door, his back turned. “How did Noah contact you?”
I closed my eyes and braced myself for his rage. “On a disposable phone he bought me a month ago. He’s been keeping me up to date as well as keeping tabs on us.”
He bent forward, then slammed his hands against the door frame. When he turned to me, I jumped at the fire in his eyes.
“A month? This has been going on for a month and neither of you mentioned it to me? I’ve f**king talked to Noah multiple times, and he never said a word.”
I stared at him and sighed. “You’ve been so on edge. Between the false positive and giving Tom the file, I’ve had to walk on eggshells and do everything I could to keep you relaxed.”
He glared at me, and icy dread flooded my system. It was anger, and not in a good way. “So, my wife has been placating me like a f**king child.”
I jumped up from the bed and stalked forward, pushing against his chest. “You wake up screaming every night! Your moods are so heightened and change so fast, I can’t keep up, so I keep even.”
Anger fled from him, replaced by something I couldn’t identify, but I knew it was a jumbled mess of turmoil. His hands ran through his hair, then down to his neck, pulling.
“I never should’ve proposed. We never should’ve gotten married.”
I flinched, recoiling back as if he’d slapped me. He looked up, his eyes empty. My mouth opened and tears began to gather in my eyes. My chest was tight, and I reached behind me, searching for the bed. Stability as my world threatened to collapse around me. His face morphed, eyes wide in panic as he lurched toward me, grabbing my arms.
“No, Honeybear, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way.”
“What way am I supposed to take it?” My voice was strained, forcing the overpowering emotions from pouring out of me. Everything was upside down.
His eyes scrunched closed, teeth bared as he squeezed me tighter.
“I somehow thought I wasn’t a bother to him any longer. All our therapy toned down my fears, and I forgot and was happy. I convinced myself we could have a future, a family, and grow old together.” My heart broke at the tortured expression on his face. “Everything that consumes me is you, and I want you in every way, but the one thing I don’t want is you hurt because of me. Marrying you tells them how much you mean to me. They can take you away from me.”
