Page 27 of The Awakening (The Morton Family Saga #3)

Chapter Twenty-Five

Ellie

“ W hy did you come to my cabin that night? You knew who I was, and you wanted to use that to your advantage, didn’t you?” Gavin slammed the door behind him as he stormed into the house.

“What are you talking about?” I looked up from the pile of laundry I was folding and stared at him.

“Was your family in on this also? It’s no secret my family is wealthy. It would be the perfect ruse.”

He stood before me, fists clenched at his sides, his hair in disarray, like he’d been running his fingers through it.

“Wha—”

But he cut me off before I could ask what on earth he was going on about.

“You got knocked up by some guy you had second thoughts about and needed to run away. And somehow you knew about me and that cabin. Did your friend Matt tell you about my family? Was he in on it? Anyone else, and you would have been stuck going back to Ray. But I’m the fool who fell for your sob story.

” He paced the kitchen, flinging his arms wildly.

I had never seen him like this. Even after a fight with his father or disagreement with his brothers.

“I didn’t plan any of this. I wouldn’t have gone back to Ray, no matter what. If you hadn’t found me, I would have been on my way to figuring out life on my own.” I looked at the floor in front of Gavin’s feet. How could he think so little of me? And where was all of this coming from?

Our morning had been wonderful, and the months that we had been in this house had been amazing. We’d fallen into our routines. Working with Kate and the horses we were rescuing and watching Gavin figure out his own dreams was more fulfilling than anything I’d ever done in my life.

“I’m staying at the main house tonight.”

As fast as he had walked into the house, he was gone again. Should I go after him? Or should I give him some space? What on earth led him to have these thoughts?

Turning back to the laundry, I sat down and cried. What was he going to do? Would he throw me out?

Honestly, I wasn’t all that surprised that he didn’t want to see this through.

I knew this ruse would have a time limit, and here we were.

Gavin and I had been having fun playing house, but I was far too young for him and pregnant with another man’s child.

Of course he’d finally come to his senses and realized he didn’t want me.

Glancing up at the clock, I knew I needed to get to town to grab a few groceries and the mail that I had forgotten to ask Gavin to pick up.

The post office closed in an hour, and I had a package waiting, so I dried my tears and went to the kitchen sink to splash some cold water on my face.

I was glad it was a thirty-minute drive to town, because I was sure my eyes were puffy and my face was splotchy.

“Oh Ellie, just the person I wanted to see today.” The woman behind the counter smiled as she turned to the mailboxes. “This just arrived for you.” She handed me a letter.

“Thank you, Mary. I will remember the key one of these days. My brain seems to be a million other places.” I laughed and smiled at the older lady who had run the post office since the Morton family moved here. She took great pride in telling me how long she had been the postmistress.

“You look about ready to pop, so it’s no wonder you’re forgetting things. I remember a few days before I had my last. I couldn’t keep a thing in my head.” Her soft voice made me feel a little more at ease.

“Thank you so much for this, Mary. I hope this little one arrives soon.” Turning to leave, I flipped the letter over and opened it, then I headed for the truck.

Pulling the mysterious letter out of the envelope, I unfolded it, and my blood ran cold the instant I recognized the handwriting.

Elyse,

You think it was that easy to get rid of me?

I know where you are. You look so beautiful pregnant with my child. There is no way that man will be raising any offspring of mine.

Don’t worry. I’ll be there to bring you home soon. Gavin Morton better watch his back because I don’t take kindly to him running off with you and my baby.

I will involve your father and brothers to bring you home if I have to. They’ve been watching, too.

Ray

The letter shook in my hand.

I remembered vaguely what happened last time someone from the community ran off and was found.

She lived a horribly lonely life. Nobody would look at her, much less befriend her because she had brought shame to her family.

I didn’t know how I got to the truck, but I was sitting in it when my phone rang.

It made me jump, and I fumbled around as I dug through my purse to find it. Gavin’s name flashed on the screen. But what if it wasn’t Gavin? What if Ray had gotten to him already?

I had done this. I had involved Gavin, and now he and this baby were in grave danger. My only option was to run, but where? I doubted Gavin would care much, but I didn’t want his blood on my hands.

I would be running for life if I took off. No, I had to go to the police. There was no other option. To run would be a black mark on Gavin and the Morton family, and I couldn’t just abandon the family that had taken me in when I didn’t have one of my own.

Gavin would worry if I didn’t answer, so I hit the green button to answer.

“Hello?” Trying my best to keep my voice chipper and carefree.

“What are you up to?” He sounded remorseful, and I wondered if he would actually apologize for the way he acted earlier.

“Just in town. I had a few things to grab, and I will be home soon.” A knife felt like it had been driven through my heart. I was lying to the man I was in love with. But it was a lie to keep him safe, so I had to be forgiven for that, right?

“Okay, well, I was concerned when I saw you drive out of the yard, so I thought I would check in.”

“See you soon. Gavin.” My voice was quiet, and I hoped he wouldn’t sense that anything was wrong.

“Bye,” he replied, and the line went dead.

Tossing my phone in my bag, I backed out of the parking spot and went toward the police station.

Running was not the answer, and I wasn’t sure the police would do much. That left one option. To go back to the ranch and let the Morton powers that be handle the situation. Gavin had saved me once, and maybe with the full force of his family behind him, he would be willing to do it again.

I pulled a quick U-turn at the end of the street and headed back to the ranch.

A black pickup suddenly appeared behind me, the sight ratcheting up my heart rate. As it pulled closer to my bumper, I waited for some kind of impact, but the truck sped around me and disappeared on the horizon.

Saying a silent thank you to whoever or whatever was watching over me, I let out a long breath, hoping it would slow my pulse.

But before I had made it to the ranch road, a blue truck sped up behind me, riding my ass. I let off the gas so he could pass, but the truck matched my speed, so I accelerated back up to the speed limit, but it stayed the same distance away.

Looking in my rearview mirror, I saw the man wave. I knew that wave. My blood ran cold, and I started shaking again. It was Ray.

How was I going to get out of this? I couldn’t stop. I didn’t trust him to remain calm. What would he do when I was supposed to turn into the ranch? I didn’t want to lead him there. My stomach sank when I realized I didn’t actually have a plan.

Ray sped up and pulled in front of me. He slowed until I had no choice but to stop. He had blocked the entire road. The ditches on both sides were almost sheer drops to the creek.

Ray stepped out of his truck, and the smug grin on his face made my stomach turn. A vehicle pulled up behind me and for a moment I thought I was saved, but Ray nodded to the driver. When I turned, I saw my oldest brother. Ray wasn’t working alone.

I let my head fall to the steering wheel, and I closed my eyes.

“Open the door, baby. We have a lot to talk about.” Gone was the haughty look on his face. His eyes turned black, and he clenched his jaw, giving me a murderous look.

“I don’t have anything to say to you.”

Bringing his hand up, he slammed the side of his fist on the window. I let out a scream, but he only laughed.

“The faster you open this door, the better this will go for you. Unlock the door, baby.”

“I’m not your baby.”

“Oh, you were mine first. Don’t forget that. The child you’re trying to pass off as a Morton is mine. I’m the one who put it deep inside you.”

“Get out of the truck. We’re going home.”

“I am home Ray. My home is with Gavin, not you.” I wished my words had sounded as strong out loud as they had inside my head.

He pulled a tire iron out from behind his back and smashed out the back window. “I told you this could go the easy way or the hard way, and you’ve just chosen hard.” He reached in unlocked the door.

“Hi honey, nice to see you.” He snarled as he opened the door.

This was it, time to face my hangman.