He looked at me completely openly. “What would have been so bad about that? We’re not related. I would have told you one day.”
I wanted to spit on him. “You disgust me! You chained me to you with guilt and lies, and made me a nervous, over-anxious girl. Easily controlled—for all your needs.”
“I’m sorry,” he said suddenly calm. Much too calm.
I blinked, irritated. “What are you sorry for?”
“That I have to do this now.” He suddenly called out loudly, “Willa, no! Child, put the gun down, for God’s sake!”
“Willa!” Nathan shouted from outside.
Don’t do that, Dad! Please don’t!I closed my eyes.
Heard the soft click.
And fell. Seconds. Minutes. Years. No idea where to. It was only my mind that fell because when I opened my eyes, I was still standing in front of Dad, and yet it felt like the ground had opened up and the depths had ripped me apart.
He had pulled the trigger! He had actually pulled the trigger! Now he was staring at me in dismay, his Glock dangling in his hand.
“Did you truly believe I was threatening you with a loaded gun?” I heard myself whisper.
I didn’t see it coming, it happened so fast. Dad raised his arm and hit me in the temple with the semi-automatic. Blood-red birds fluttered before my eyes and the ground rushed toward me. I saw Dad lunge again. “Mr. Cox! Quick! We need Dr. Moore,” he shouted.
At that moment, the door flew open and my father paused. “She attacked me!”
“Will!” Nathan stormed in and involuntarily stopped. I lay on my back, staring at him. He looked like he did on the Agamemnon when I had first seen him without the blindfold. He wore a black headband and black clothes, looking wild and dark. However, that wasn’t what made my heart beat even harder. It was the way Nathan looked at my father, who was now standing over me. I don’t think I’ve ever seen more hatred in a person’s eyes except for when Noah grabbed me by the neck and shoved me against the wall.
“You damn bastard,” I heard him curse. His voice sounded like the roar of the sea, but it was merely a whisper. In a fewsteps, he was by my side, grabbing my father’s arm, who was completely taken aback, and knocking the gun out of his hand. It slid like a puck across the white marble, stopping directly in front of Mr. Cox’s feet, who was staring wide-eyed at me from the door.
“You’ll never hurt her again! Not her or anyone else!” With a single blow, Nathan sent my father to the ground and was immediately on top of him while Mr. Cox yelled “Stop!” from the background. Nathan, however, ignored him. He grabbed my father by the collar and hit him repeatedly as if with every single blow he was avenging one of the dead from Coldville.
I wanted to calm him down, to grab his arm, but I was still dazed and not fast enough. A shot rang out in the air. I screamed and Mr. Cox yelled, “That’s the last warning, young man!”
Through a shower of sparkling stars, I saw Mr. Cox approaching us with his gun drawn. My heart was racing. Nathan had stopped, his fist raised. Below him, Dad groaned in agony. Blood was oozing from a gash in his eyebrow and his eye was black.
With my head pounding, I rose and stood in front of Nathan. “Don’t shoot! He was only defending me. My father…Mr. Hampton…threatened me. You saw it yourself.” Our doorman, Franklin, and another security guard suddenly appeared behind Mr. Cox, who picked up the Glock from the floor. From them, I looked at Nathan, who was still standing over my father in a fighting stance.
“Don’t,” I whispered into the silence that had fallen over the foyer. “Stop, please…”
Nathan looked at me, seemingly completely taken aback.
“Let’s get out of here. We have evidence,” I said and began to cry as everything that had happened suddenly came crashing down on me. “We need to…we just need to collect it.” The tears streamed nonstop down my face. “Right now!”
Nathan blinked. “Will, he’s done so many terrible things,” he said as if he didn’t care about Mr. Cox and his gun.
“And he’ll be punished for that,” I said, crying.
Nathan shook his head, still holding Dad by the collar. “He’ll get away with it. Men like him always get away with it.”
Dad looked up. He obviously didn’t understand anything. “Who are you?” he asked almost tonelessly, his right eyelid twitching incessantly.
I glanced at Mr. Cox, who had stopped, and wiped my eyes before turning back to Dad. “This is Nathan McCormack. Remember his name.” Dad looked between Nathan and me before I continued, “He’s one of the…the victims from Coldville,” I told him, feeling a faint smile spread across my face. “He gave me the driftwood heart many years ago, and I love him. He’s my everything.” I reached out to Nathan and the smile I loved so much flashed across his face. He let go of Dad and grabbed my fingers.
Dad pressed his lips together. “Don’t mess with me, Willa.”
My smile faded. “I made printouts of all the reports and threw them out the window earlier. Right now, they’re flying like leaflets over New York. Someone will find them.” I looked at Nathan and he nodded. “Or have already been found.”
Dad’s eyes widened. “What are you saying?”
