I shook my head, the sting of her words undeniable. “No. No. I didn’t do this. I’m not perfect, but I didn’t do this. You have to tell the police the truth.”
“I can’t,” she said, taking a step toward me. She was still trying to reason with me, but there was an assertiveness now that hadn’t been there before. I imagined this was how Emily had seen her. My daughter’s last sight on Earth.
I thought then of how selfish I’d been. How right Megan was. How my secret had caused so much devastation. I wouldn’t let Brad go down for something I’d caused. I wouldn’t let anyone else suffer for my selfishness.
“Megan, you have to tell the cops. You can’t let this go on—”
“I didn’t mean to do it—”
“But you did it!”
“Because of you!” she screamed, taking another aggressive step toward me. “Because of your lies and because you couldn’t just be happy with one amazing man. You had to lead them both on. Do you have any idea how much Nick loves you? How much damage you’ve done to him? I’m the only one trying to fix it—”
“That’s not true—”
“You have no idea what is or isn’t true. You’ve only managed to bring him pain for years, and he puts on a brave face and pretends it’s all fine in order to protect you, but who’s protecting him? If you truly cared about him, you wouldn’t do this. I’m all he has.”
“That’s not true. He has me. He’s always had me. He had a daughter, but you killed her—”
“After you took her away. He was going to propose to you, and you asked to put her up for adoption—”
Tears blurred my vision. “That’s not true. We weren’t ready for a child! He agreed!”
“He didn’t. He never has. He never told me it was you, but he told me how much giving that baby up broke his heart. He told me how much he wanted to marry its mother.”
I shook my head. It wasn’t true. It couldn’t be.
“He’s always gone with whatever you said because he loves you blindly, and you’ve been so selfish you never saw it.”
I moved to shove past her, trying to dart out of the room, but she grabbed hold of my hair, jerking me backward. I threw a hand to my scalp as I fell to the ground, my head connecting with the floor with a loud THWACK. “Let me go!”
She slapped a hand over my mouth, just as she had Emily’s, and I saw her eyes go dark as her hand slid up to cover my nose, too. She was going to kill me.
I fought back with all my strength, an even match for her as we struggled. I inhaled, my lungs screaming for air, but her hand blocked all chance of getting any. I twisted, freeing myself from her grasp and moved to crawl away. She grabbed hold of me again, sitting on my back as her hands wrapped around my neck. She planted them firmly over my nose and mouth again, pulling back. I heard my neck pop, and I froze. Was this how it ended?
“I don’t want to do this,” she whispered. “Please don’t make me.” Pleading. “It wasn’t supposed to go this way. I don’t want to hurt you.”
I wiggled, but she pulled back further. “You need to listen to me. You’re giving me no choice,” she warned.
I was trying, but the edges of my vision were growing dark and fuzzy. I tasted the salt of her skin. I felt my head growing heavy as I heard the door behind us closing. No. Opening.
A commotion.
Footsteps.
Oxygen.
Breathe.
Breathe.
“Let her go.”
The hand was off my lips. I gasped for air, my hands at my throat as I sucked in a breath and spun around, scooting away from my assailant with wild eyes.
Natasha was there. And Nick. Andy. Jaren. Manu. The police. An officer was pulling Megan backward. The sound in the room seemed to fade. Screaming. Crying. Breathing. So many people. I fought for air, so amazed at how easily it came, yet my head was still fuzzy.
I lay back against the wall, trying to breathe. Trying to understand.
“You’re okay,” Nick whispered, moving past Megan and toward me. An officer was on my other side, but I didn’t remember him approaching me.
“Get the doctor,” Manu called behind him. I couldn’t see to whom.
Natasha kneeled down beside me, her eyes full of tears. “Just breathe. We’re here.”
Just breathe.
I nodded.
I could do that.
I could breathe.
Chapter Forty-Five
Laura
ONE WEEK LATER
It was just Nick, Andy, and me. Walking alone along the shore. There was so much weight between us. So much we should’ve been saying. Instead, we moved in silence.
In the week since we returned from the island, Brad was released from police custody and Megan had been charged. From the hut next door, Natasha had heard the screams, gotten the police’s attention, and ultimately, saved my life.
Once in jail, Megan had revealed to them, as she had to me, how everything had gone so wrong. Her trial was still months away, but I didn’t see how she’d manage to get away with any of it.
Brad and I had agreed to separate. He could forgive me for cheating, for lying about so much, but he said he could never forgive
