She exhaled and told her story again.
It was late afternoon by the time they arrived in Perth, Western Australia.Mila had avoided talking to Vance for the entire trip as she made herself Ethan’s personal helper in Singapore, getting him food and drink when he needed it.
His actual nurse didn’t seem to mind.
At the air force base she got his phone number and the name of the hospital they were taking him to and waved as the ambulance took him away.
The soldier responsible for them turned to her and Vance.“We’ve got you on a flight to Sydney from the domestic airport in three hours.”He gestured to a nearby army vehicle.“We’ll take you there now.”
The car seemed incredibly quiet after the noise of the plane and silence stretched between her and Vance.Mila wished she had her phone so she could scroll social media or read a book, but instead she stared out the window.
She no longer found him good looking, couldn’t remember why she had.The sullen turn to his mouth wasn’t intriguing, it was sulky and everything about him screamed selfish to her.
Vance had received the message and didn’t speak to her.
At the airport they were given their tickets, checked in and left to their own devices.
She headed for the security point and Vance followed her.It wasn’t until they were through to the waiting area that Vance spoke.
“Mila, I’m sorry.”
It was surprise that made her turn to look at him.“Really?”
He ran a hand through his hair.“Of course I’m sorry.I didn’t mean to get you caught up in my mess.”
She gazed at him, unmoved.“I seem to recall you saying to Agus you had to marry me, which is when he stole my phone and laptop.”
“Shit.Yeah, OK, I did, but I didn’t think he would do something so extreme.”
“Whatdidyou think he would do?”
He swore again.“I wasn’t thinking about anything but myself.I was desperate.”
“No, you were selfish and inconsiderate,” she said.“You never cared for me.You used me to get a job.”
He looked guilty, but said, “I cared for you.”
“When’s my birthday?”
He looked blank.“Your birthday?”
“Yeah.When I threw the party for your birthday, you asked when mine was.”
He scowled.“I don’t remember.”
Because it wasn’t important to him.She didn’t have the energy to care about him any longer.“It’s over, Vance.I don’t want to see you again.”
“What will you tell your father?”
Still only worried about his own skin.“The truth.You’ll need to live with the consequences of your actions, and maybe in the future you’ll consider how they’ll affect others.”
He opened his mouth as if to argue and then closed it again.“Fine.Good luck.”He walked away.
She exhaled and spotted a payphone against the wall.She hadn’t called her father yet.
He would make her feel better.
She still had her bag with some cash in it, and money given to her by the soldier who’d dropped them at the airport, so she went into the nearest bookstore to get some change.
