I rest my hand over his, feeling the tension thrum beneath his skin. “You’re allowed to have a life and choose something for yourself.”
His fingers curl around mine like he’s choosing me all over again as the cabin comes into view. The heavy log cabin planted firm and strong, the big red barn made for feed and shelter, the horses running through the open field with wild abandon, and the shimmering field of lavender. Every soft purple bloom a reminder of the love Silas has for me.
For a second, I picture myself coming back here a year from now. My belly expanded with his baby kicking inside of me, the breeze carrying the calming scent of the future we’ve built.
It’s then that I see Adam. He’s in the back field perched on one of Silas’ tractors, the engine roaring loud enough to drown out the birds, and he’s mowing… the lavender!
Row after row falls beneath the blades, the blooms flattening, shredding, disappearing into a cloud of purple dust. The tractor crawls forward with a slow deliberate purpose, like he wants us to watch, like he wants us to feel every second of the pain it’s causing.
Silas goes still beside me. Completely still, like someone hit pause on the world around us.
The hum of the tractor grows louder as Adam turns the wheel and lines up the next untouched row. He doesn’t look at us, though he doesn’t have to. The message is clear.
This is personal, and he’s not stopping until his point is made.
Chapter Ten
Silas
I kiss my girl on the top of her head. “Stay inside and lock the door. Don’t come out for anything.”
“I don’t like this. Let me talk to him. He’s—”
“I love you, sweet girl, but I should handle this alone.”
There’s a slow silence before Ellie nods and slips into the house, locking the door behind her. The click of the deadbolt feels louder than it should, like this whole damn thing is about to blow the fuck up and every moment of it is on me.
I don’t blame Adam at all. I get it. I’d want to fuck me up too. I’d want to fuck me up in all kinds of ways.
He hops off the tractor and walks across the field in jeans and a T-shirt, his baseball cap back. The cap I bought while we were at a game a year or so ago up in the Springs. Everything felt okay then. We were eating hotdogs, laughing about missed plays, poking fun at the Scarecrows for missing another hit.
Maybe I was kidding myself. Maybe he was putting on a show. Maybe he’s been hating me for years.
“You’re fucking sick,” he barks, his shoulders wide, his jaw clenched as he walks toward me. “Who the fuck do you think you are? You’re supposed to be my father and you’re doing God knows what with my ex-girlfriend! Who does that? You’re a sick fucking asshole!”
I deserve worse than anything he’s saying, so I stay quiet and let his vengeful words be carried by the breeze that’s filled with the soft, clean scent of my mishandled emotions.
“I saw you kissing her in the alley today. You two can’t even hide it anymore?” He huffs under his breath as his dark eyes flare with more anger. “First, it was all the stupid little conversations, then you started talking about planting all this lavender. That’s when I put the tracker on her phone. I figured I’d catch you texting her, but you didn’t, and I thought maybe this was all in my head. So, I made a plan to get her back. Then, this week, you ran off to protect her…from me!”
“You weren’t trying to get her back. You were going to kidnap her.”
“I was going to show her what she was missing out on.” He laughs through the anger. “I cared about her and you became the wall between us.”
He shakes his head, and though I know he’s gone off the rails, I feel responsible for most of it.
“I get you’re mad at me, you should be, but you can’t do what you’re doing. You can’t vandalize people’s property. You can’t make plans to kidnap someone. You can’t—”
“You know what,” he smiles, “you’re right, Dad. Thanks for the talk.” He takes a step back toward his truck parked behind the oak tree at the corner of the lot.
“I didn’t know you were still thinking about her like that. You broke up and I—”
“And you thought she was up for grabs. I get it, Dad.” He shakes his head. “You know what… it makes sense. There aren’t enough women your age on the mountain,oh wait, there are a plenty of them!”
“I didn’t plan for this. I didn’t seek her out. I spent the last year trying to avoid her. Then I found your notebook, I thoughther parents should know she was in danger, and her mom asked that I help.”
He groans. “Oh, you helped alright.”
I don’t know if this can be repaired.
