Page 49 of Crash Over Us
“I’ll figure out how to come back. I will.”
The tears ran down my cheeks. “This can’t be happening.” It was like lightning had split us open.
He kissed the top of my head. “I’ll try to come back before I leave, but I have a lot to do before the ferry. And my mom isn’t taking the news very well. My dad says I might need to spend some time there tonight.”
“Oh God.” I knew it was going to hurt her and his dad. They loved having him here. They loved that he stayed on the island and made a life here.
His eyes closed. “Let me go and take care of this. I’ll call you. I’ll come back to you.”
I couldn’t let him go. My fingers refused to unfurl. I had him tightly in my hands. My body wouldn’t move. It wouldn’t respond to his commands. Finally, he wrangled free. He kept putting space between us, backing up, and I kept inching toward him.
“I’ll come with you,” I pleaded. “I’ll help you pack, and I’ll go see your parents.” I choked on a sob.
He shook his head. “It’s too much. And you’ll slow me down. I’ve got to get this done or I’m going to lose my job. My entire career. I have no choice but to be on that 6 am ferry.”
“Come back tonight?” I needed more time. I needed him. It couldn’t be over like this. We needed time together to hold each other. To talk. To plan. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye. I never wanted to say goodbye. I refused to accept this was our life right now.
“If I can.” He held the side of my face. “I’ll try.”
“Then I’ll go to Virginia,” I sputtered. “We’ll make a road trip out of it.”
He shook his head. “Too many reasons for you to stay here. The first is the hurricane. The second is all the work you’ve put in the marina. And the third—they won’t let you on base there, baby. We’re not married.”
It was like a rushing waterfall of bad news.
When he turned to go, I felt my entire body pulse with pain. It was unbearable, unstoppable pain.
“Be good while I’m gone.” He winked.
“Caleb!” I screamed.
I called his name again, but he climbed in his truck. I had to move when he put it in reverse.
“Don’t go like this! I want to come with you!” I cried.
I ran after him when he drove down the drive and out of sight. I dropped to my knees in the middle of the wooded part of the road. The rocks scraped and cut my knees. I didn’t care. I didn’t feel the cuts or scrapes. All I felt was my heart shattering. I folded in half, sobbing, screaming, beating the dirt and gravel with my fists. What if he didn’t come back? What if this was the end?
I was alone again.
TWENTY-FIVE
Margot
I wasn’t sure how long I stayed crumpled in the gravel road. I only knew that at some point, the mosquitoes overpowered my resistance. I made my way back to the cottage and upstairs to the shower. I washed the dirt and gravel from my knees as if I were in slow motion.
I turned off the water and toweled off. I dressed and sat on my bed, staring at my phone.
How had this happened? How had Caleb been ripped away suddenly and without warning?
I sent him a text. He didn’t answer. God, I didn’t want to hide in my bed anymore. I didn’t want to go back to the dark places I had been. I’d finally crawled out of those holes. I stood, knowing the temptation to just wrap the quilt against myself was strong. I headed downstairs, grabbed a book from the shelf, and walked to the screened porch. The sun was setting. It didn’t seem likely that there was a hurricane just off the coast headed this way.
The heron coasted over the water with only a peaceful flap of his wings. I looked for him every day. It seemed his favorite time to appear was when the sun was going down. When the sky was lit up with orange and pink, as if it was storing embers just below the surface that glowed and lit up the clouds. There was an air of tranquility that was about to be eviscerated.
I sat in the corner chair. The one I had claimed this summer that had the best view. I tucked my phone next to me and checked it every five minutes. I must have read the same page at least three times before I moved on to the next, but I knew that didn’t mean I had remembered what I read. I wasn’t sure I knew the title of the book. All I could think about was Caleb. Was he packing? Was he telling his parents what happened?
I felt helpless. I felt responsible. If the money hadn’t traveled through the marina and across Dean’s hands, this wouldn’t have happened. I wondered if Caleb ever thought Dean would go as far as he did in his investigation to uncover the truth. We both knew it wasn’t the truth Dean was after—it was something darker. More sinister. Control. Power. Knowledge to use against someone. He had all the leverage he needed to get Caleb off the island. I thought I was going to be sick all over again. I took a sip of water and refocused on the page in front of me.
The darkness curled around the porch. I could barely hear the frogs tonight. I wondered if it was because they were preparing for the hurricane. Their instincts had taught them to burrow into the boggy marsh and hide until the storm was over. I realized that’s the same instinct I had.
