His father disconnected the call before he could say another word, and Brad got up and went to the coffeepot. Pouring another one, he took it outside to wait for the sun to rise.
He packedhis stuff at five in the morning and put the cabin to rights. He managed to catch some sleep until eight, and then climbed on his bike and headed to Ethan’s house. He’d realized as he’d spent those long hours thinking that he had no choice but to do as his father asked. He’d spent hours covering every scenario, but they all led back to that fact that he couldn’t let his father destroy Howling and the surrounding countryside. He had to go back, and the thought made him feel ill.
Annabelle appeared on the deck above him in her nurse uniform.
“You want coffee?”
“No, I’m good thanks.”
“If you’re looking for your brother, he’s at Jake’s, playing with something that makes a vroom vroom noise.”
“I’ll head over there now, but before I do, I wanted to say good-bye to you.”
She started down the stairs at his words.
“Where you going?”
“I’m leaving, Annabelle. It’s for the best.”
“Whose best?” She didn’t stop until she was beside his bike.
“It’s just something that has to be done.”
She studied him. “What’s going on, Brad?”
“Nothing, I just need to leave.” His chest hurt. Even drawing in a breath was painful. He hadn’t realized he was panicking until right at that moment. It was flooding his body, and he couldn’t stop it.
He didn’t want to leave. Funny how that thought came to him now. He wanted to stay here with his brother, his new sister and friends, but most of all he wanted to stay here with Macy and Billy.
Nice timing, bud.
Funny how it took his father to shake that confession out of him. He loved Macy, and thank God he hadn’t told her that, because that would make his leaving even harder.
“No, you don’t, you want to stay,” Annabelle said softly, and then she wrapped her arms around his neck and held him close, and it was all Brad could do not to let the tears he felt stinging behind his eyelids fall.
He let her hold him until he’d got his shit together, and then eased back.
“I’ll come back, I promise.”
“If you don’t, we’re coming to get you.”
“Don’t cry for me, Annabelle.” Brad hated to see the tears rolling down her cheeks. “I’m okay, really.”
“I need you to know something before you run, Brad, and I want you to listen carefully, okay?”
He nodded and then she cupped his cheeks.
“You are a good man. A man I trust, a man I love, but most of all I can never thank you enough for filling the hole that leaving you left in my husband’s heart. Know that you always have a home here, and when you’re done doing what you believe you must, then come back here and settle with us.”
He couldn’t manage words, so he simply nodded, and then taking her hand he squeezed it hard before turning his bike around and leaving her behind.
He rode, letting the wind dry his tears, and wondered what fates had combined to force him back to the man he hated when he had finally found a place to lay his heart.
Why had he taken so long to stop fighting what he felt?
The old Brad would have left without saying good-bye, but he owed Ethan more than that. So he forced some deep breaths into his lungs and tried to regroup. He’d been good at hiding once; he was relying on that skill now.
He found his brother in the barn with Jake.
