Chapter 4 - The Final Confrontation
I was sitting on the porch of the beach house,
watching the waves crash against the shore in rhythmic,
merciless sets.
Dylan was inside,
watching a movie,
safe in the cocoon of comfort I had carefully maintained for him.
The headlights of Brandon’s SUV cut through the twilight,
illuminating the palm trees as he screeched to a halt in the driveway.
He stepped out of the vehicle,
his uniform disheveled,
his hat forgotten somewhere on the base.
He looked like a man who had been caught in a landslide.
"Evie!"
he shouted,
stumbling toward the porch.
"What have you done?
What did you tell them?"
I didn't stand up.
I didn't raise my voice.
I simply set my tea down on the table and looked at him with a cold,
unflinching clarity.
"I didn't tell them anything they didn't already know,
Brandon,"
I said.
"I just stopped paying for the curtain that was hiding the truth."
He stopped at the bottom of the steps,
his chest heaving.
"My career...
it’s over.
Chloe’s firm is being liquidated.
They’re talking about a court martial for 'conduct unbecoming'.
How could you do this to our family?
To Dylan?"
"Don't you dare mention Dylan,"
I said,
my voice dropping into a lethal,
quiet tone that made him flinch.
"You brought your mistress into your place of work.
You allowed her to profit from my family’s generosity.
You stood by that window and laughed while I was at the gate with our son,
holding his breakfast."
Brandon’s face went white.
"You were there?"
"I saw everything,
Brandon.
The guard,
Harris,
he tried to protect me.
But I saw your hand on her.
I saw the way you looked at her.
And in that moment,
I realized that you never loved me.
You loved the rank I bought for you.
You loved the prestige I provided."
"Evie,
it was a mistake,
I can fix it—"
"You can't fix a foundation that has been demolished,"
I said,
standing up.
"The lawyers have already filed the paperwork.
The trust has reclaimed this house.
The vehicles will be towed by morning.
And your bank accounts?
They’ve been frozen pending the investigation into Chloe’s contracts."
He looked around the beautiful property,
realizing that he was a stranger in his own life.
"Where am I supposed to go?"
he asked,
his voice breaking.
"Go to Chloe,"
I suggested,
a cruel smile touching my lips.
"I’m sure she has plenty of room for you now that she has no work to keep her busy.
Oh,
wait.
I heard she left the base in a hurry.
She’s probably looking for a new Commander to bankroll her life."
I walked to the door,
pausing with my hand on the handle.
"Dylan and I are leaving for London tomorrow to stay with Julian.
Don't try to contact us.
My brothers have already arranged for a security detail."
"You're taking my son?"
he yelled,
stepping onto the porch.
I turned back,
my eyes burning with a fire he had never seen.
"You gave him up the second you forgot who his mother was.
Goodbye,
Brandon.
Enjoy the life you built 'all on your own'."
I went inside and locked the door,
May you like
the sound of the deadbolt clicking into place being the final,
absolute end of our marriage.
