I hung up and pulled over to the curb, getting out mechanically, not bothering with my purse or coffee. I had a feeling I wouldn’t need either.
As I approached, the crowd turned, all of them gawking at me, some with pitying looks, while others gave me the typical side-eye. Slowly, the shop came into view, and the sight was absolutely devastating.
Smashed windows, clothes pulled out onto the sidewalk, torn and shredded. But I kept walking, needing to see the full extent of the damage.
“Ellie,” Mav said sympathetically as I stopped in front of the shop. My sign dangled precariously above the window.
The Last Best Place For Style
My baby, what I had worked so hard for, was destroyed all in the blink of an eye. But as I stared at the destruction, I was numb to it, unable to move even an inch. Someone had destroyed my dream, and for what?
I could see from where I stood that not a single thing had been left untouched. Even the chandeliers that I had handpicked to give the right warmth to the store had been ruined. The pictures on the walls were slashed, the racks were overturned, and the mirrors were smashed.
Not a single thing was salvageable.
“We’ll check the cameras in the area, but?—”
“It’s unlikely you’ll find anything,” I finished for him.
Sighing, he took off his hat, running his fingers along the rim. “I’m sorry, Ellie. I really am. This is?—”
But I tuned him out, turning to face the growing crowd. Staring at the faces, all the people I used to know, used to hang out with…and they’d all turned their backs on me. All of them had been so willing to shove me aside with their own opinions and misgivings.
I was nothing to them.
“Are you fucking happy?” I shouted.
Silence met me as they shifted uncomfortably where they stood.
“Is this what you wanted? You’re all so fucking self-righteous that you couldn’t just leave me alone? This whole fucking town is so hypocritical! I did something to help a friend, and instead of listening to him when he told you the truth, you chose to believe that I was some slut!” I shouted, throwing my hands in the air as I quickly melted down in front of the whole crowd.
I saw Josie and Delaney rush through the crowd, their faces crestfallen as they saw the destruction.
“I gave my heart and soul to this town, and this is what I get in return? My livelihood is ruined! Everything I’ve worked for is gone!”
I sucked in a ragged breath as tears spilled down my cheeks. The enormity of the situation washed over me, pressing down on me like a cold weight.
“What more can I do to prove myself to you? Do you want my blood, too? Do you want to see me laying on the ground, bleeding out for my sins? Will you be happy then?”
A warm hand wrapped around my arm, but I flinched, shaky and wary of who would dare approach me right now. But when I turned, it was to find Ryder watching me warily. His eyesscanned over the crowd, a menacing growl snarling his lips as he stared down each and every person who gossiped about me and spread lies.
Then he tugged me into his arms and I broke, falling to pieces as the rest of my life crumbled beneath my feet. Soon, Delaney and Josie were there, each of them wrapping me in their arms as I sank to the ground and cried for everything I’d lost.
The boutique was just the last thread.
“Show’s over, folks. Get out of here,” Maverick called out.
I was vaguely aware of the deputies dispersing the crowd, of people whispering as I sat in front of the shop I had given my life to.
“We’ll get it cleaned up,” Josie said, rubbing her hands up and down my arms.
“Yeah, I’ll close the shop and we’ll get this mess taken care of.”
“And the insurance will cover the damage,” Josie assured me.
But it was too late for all that. Why would I stay here in a town where everyone hated me? What was left for me? If I cleaned it up, how long would it be before it happened again?
“I’m done,” I said woodenly, getting to my feet.
