When the man didn't respond, he amped up the pain until Simon was literally sobbing and writhing, desperate to get away from the agony flooding his body but with nowhere to go.
“Understand?” he repeated.
“Y-yes.”
“Say it.”
“I-I un-understand,” the man babbled.
“I know how to make sure your body is never found, and honestly, who’s even going to care if you go missing? Your family wants nothing to do with you. You think your little gang friends are going to cry a river over your loss?” Micah barked out a laugh. “No one cares about you, not anymore, not after what you did. The world will be a better place without you in it, so part of me almost hopes you come after her again, so I have an excuse to kill you. But that’s not what she wants. Part of her still loves you, which is the only reason you’re still breathing right now. But if you ever go near her again, that changes. I will end you, and I won't feel an ounce of remorse for it. You touch her again, you die. It’s as simple as that.”
CHAPTER 14
May5th
1:39 P.M.
Her mind was blown.
Teresa still couldn’t really believe she’d heard Micah say what she knew she’d heard him say.
He was still in love with her?
When he’d said he loved her as she was being rolled away to be operated on against her will, she’d thought that was his fear talking, not that he really did still love her.
The apologies he’d given, and his claims that he wanted to make it up to her, she’d assumed he was being primarily motivated by guilt. After all, it had been twelve years since their lives together imploded. What else would she think?
Sure, he’d talked about wanting to earn her forgiveness and wanting a place in her life, but again, she had assumed he’d meant friendship. Possibly she would stretch so far as to believe that he wanted to recreate a time in their lives where they’d both been young and happy, now he knew he was the one who had ruined what they shared and not her.
But it was more than that.
Deeper than that.
He still loved her.
Actually loved her. Not just saying it out of fear.
Did that change things?
Did it matter?
Love couldn’t go back and fix what was done in the past, make it so that it never happened, but it could change her future if that was what she wanted.
The ball was in her court, Teresa was well aware of that. Micah wanted what she now realized was a second chance at a romantic relationship, not just a friendship born of guilt and shame. While he wanted that, he wasn't going to push for it. He knew that what he’d done had possibly ruined things beyond repair.
So it was up to her to decide which path they walked down.
And whether they walked down it alone or together.
There was only one way she could even begin to make a decision about that.
“We need to talk,” she announced the second Micah locked her apartment door behind them.
They’d spoken with the cops, her brother had been arrested, the officer who had cuffed him had assured her that he would be serving time, and not getting bounced right back out. She hoped that was true, but even if it wasn't, she’d seen the look on Simon’s face as he was loaded into the back of the police car, clearly in agony, and it was one she recognized. It was the same look of terror she’d walked around wearing for months after the assault.
Whatever Micah had done to him seemed to have worked, and she could only hope he was forever scared away from her. A lingering part of her still loved the little brother she’d known when they were small, but mostly she just wanted to keep himout of her life and heal as best she could from the trauma he’d inflicted on her.
“First, ice for your arm.” Micah took her hand, and she found his was trembling as he led her over to the couch.
