“What if I don’twantto stay?”
“And where would you go?You have no money of your own.No home.Everything you have is tied to Victor.”
I parted my lips to argue, but he was right.I’d essentially traded my soul to the devil for a false sense of security.Now, I had nowhere to go.No place to call home.
But did that mean I was willing to stay with Henry?
“Don’t ask me to let you go, Ariana.I can’t—” He broke off, his voice low and raw.“When I drove up to my Jeep and saw all that blood staining the snow…” He squeezed his eyes shut before returning his pained gaze to mine.“I can’t lose you.Please don’t make me go through that again.I don’t… I don’t think I’d survive.”
The look on his face made my chest ache.
What must that have been like?To wake up to find me missing?To learn the Bratva was after me?
Then to find the car I’d stolen smashed into a tree with blood everywhere?
I wanted to sympathize with him.Wanted to wrap him in my arms and assure him he’d never lose me.
But I wasn’t sure I could trust him.
“How did my mother end up here?”I asked, redirecting the conversation before I allowed his kind words to pull me under.
He tore his eyes from me, clearing his throat.“I wasn’t sure how far Victor would go.”He took a bite of his taco, washing it down with some water.“I had her brought here just in case.Turns out, I was right.Victor’s made substantial donations to a charity Dr.Schaffer is on the board of.My guess is he bribed him to falsify her records.And drug her.”
I coughed.“What?”
“She doesn’t have dementia, Ariana.The scans didn’t match.Her panels showed a cocktail of drugs meant to mimic it.My guess is you only saw your mother when Victor allowed it?”
I slowly nodded.
“Probably made sure she was doped up enough.”
“So she’s…she’s fine?”
“She is.”
The words broke something inside me.I covered my mouth, a small sob escaping before I could stop it.
All those years I’d watched her fade.All that guilt.All that grief.
And it was all another lie.
Another game of manipulation.
No wonder doctors couldn’t find anything wrong with her until Victor recommended his specialist to us.Dr.Wilson Schaffer.
Without thinking, I reached for Henry.My hand found his, warm and rough.“Thank you.”
He squeezed back, his thumb brushing my knuckles.“I’d do anything for you.”
There was so much sincerity in his words and, for a moment, I let myself believe him.
Let myself feel the warmth of his touch.
Let myself be happy.
“So what now?”I asked quietly, releasing his hand and refocusing my attention on my taco.
“Now you rest.Spend time with your mother.Make up for the years you lost.”
