Page 88 of Single Mom's Undoing

“You’ve been nothing but a fucking pain in my side from the moment you crawled back into town,” she hisses.

“I take it you knew Bill was holding me and my son captive here then?” I calmly reply and set the mug down on the counter.

Every nerve ending in my body comes alive, my defense instincts kicking in. Elizabeth takes an aggressive stance, her bony shoulders squared as she takes a step forward. I’m not afraid of her, per se, but I am afraid of what might happen next. There is nothing scarier than an unpredictable psychopath, and Elizabeth has checked most of the boxes in that particular area.

“Just take his money and leave,” she says. “You’re a pest, Clara. Your son will be better off.”

“You don’t actually believe I’d leave my son behind, given your efforts to get Shiloh back?” I promptly reply.

Her lips twist in rage. “Well, that’s not gonna happen anytime soon, thanks to Damon and your other boyfriends.”

“Where’s Bill?”

“Not here, as it turns out,” she scoffs. “Figures, the one time I needed his support and he’s out. But you, on the other hand, you’ve been keeping him busier than he should be, given the circumstances, so I’m taking executive action.”

“Executive action?”

“Yes. Take his money and leave. Today. By noon. We’ll take good care of Matty. I’m going to figure out another way to get Shiloh back,” she mutters, her gaze scanning the length of the kitchen counter.

I follow it and realize she’s eyeing the knives. It sends a terrifying shiver down my spine.

“Elizabeth, what happened? Why are you here?”

“Damon won, okay? He screwed me over, and I can’t get Shiloh back!” she snarls and slaps the counter. “Thoseassholes banded together and annihilated any shot I had in family court.”

I chuckle dryly. “You never reallyhada shot?—”

“See, this right here! This is what made you so insufferable, ever since we were kids!” Elizabeth shouts. “This know-it-all, I’m-smarter-than-you bullshit! I hated it then, and I hate it even more now.”

“Yet Damon chose me.” I land that with zero grace.

She doesn’t deserve any grace. She is complicit in all of this, and I am done trying to be the better person. I’m tired of taking the high road when people like her feel entitled to try and hurt me simply because they can.

“And where is Damon now?” Elizabeth asks, her eyes wide and sparkling. “Looking for you, and yet he has no idea where or how to find you. You’re fucked, Clara, and not in a good way. It’s what you get for trying to bite off more than you can chew. Bill will never let you take Matty away.”

“And Damon will never let you take Shiloh. So what’s your endgame? I thought Bill wanted Carter to raise my son in my absence.”

Elizabeth chuckles. “That’s just ridiculous. He may want that, but it’ll be Bill and me. We’llbe the ones taking care of Matty. We’ll get Shiloh, too.”

“Oh, so you plan on kidnapping her, too? You’ve lost your goddamn mind, you crazy bitch.”

“No, I actually have clarity for the first time,” she says and grabs one of the knives, pointing it at me. “I wasted weeks trying to go through the legal channels, but Bill just took youand your kid. He takes what he wants. I should’ve picked up on that. I should’ve learned that there’s no other way.”

“What are you doing, Elizabeth?” My breaths are coming quicker, my pulse racing.

“Doing what nobody else has the balls to do. If you’re not going to leave willingly, I will make you leave.”

I bring my hands up in defense. “Elizabeth don’t do something you’ll regret. I’m pregnant.”

“You’re what?”

“Pregnant.”

She gasps. “Whose is it?”

I glance to the side and realize my hot tea is still within my reach. Reasoning with Elizabeth is clearly no longer an option.

“It doesn’t matter,” I tell her.