Paul had been arrested and charged with a host of things. Attempted rape, kidnapping, assault. Multiple counts of drug and illegal arms trafficking. He was going to jail for the rest of his life, but the wounds Cindy had incurred would take some time to heal.
Lily crying out for her mother had caught my attention. Daniel and I had been celebrating our victory when we heard Lily on the porch screaming for Cindy. I opened my door to find Lily crying, wiping her eyes as she clutched her blanket. I had gathered her in my arms as Daniel ran to the house, trying to see if he could find Cindy.
But she hadn’t been there.
I had just gathered the police at her home when my cell phone rang. And as soon as I picked up, one of the officers hooked up my phone and began to trace her call. Another officer was recording everything that was being said on her end of the phone, and I felt my blood boiling. I had instructed Daniel to stay with Lily. Then a few officers and I left to go find Cindy and get to her before Paul killed her.
Had those officers not been right behind me, I would’ve killed him, beaten him with my bare hands until he choked on his own blood. Between that phone call, the evidence the CIA had, and the injuries Cindy had sustained, Paul would never see the light of day again.
And I finally had answers as to what happened to my family.
It came to light that Paul meant to kill all of us that day. He had set one of the Fresco family’s soldiers up to come after my family to shut us up. It was my constant digging that kept Paul on his toes and having to cover his tracks, and he was getting tired of it. The plan had been to kill all of us that morning.
I ached. I hurt in places I never thought I would feel again. I wanted Paul dead, and yet I wanted him alive to suffer every second in the prison they would haul his ass to. They were nailing him to the wall. No one was willing to cut him a deal because they were going to make an example out of him. And I loved it. The dark part of me that wanted to rip him limb from limb was ecstatic that they would make him suffer.
Death was too easy for men like him.
I watched Cindy come and go from my house. She had sustained a mild concussion, a dislocated shoulder, a sprained wrist, multiple lacerations to her face, and bruising on her arms and legs. But the emotional wounds she had would take years to heal.
Possibly a lifetime.
But my plan still hadn’t changed. Had I not messed with her or allowed myself to get so close to her, Paul wouldn’t have been triggered. He probably would’ve stayed creepy, I’m sure. But his anger over Cindy and I being together wouldn’t have thrown him over the edge. It was still my fault that she’d had to go through all she had.
I knew what I had to do, but she deserved an explanation. Now that my name had been cleared and Paul was off the streets, I knew it was safe enough to explain to her what was going to happen.
She deserved at least that much.
I went over and knocked on her door. I shuffled from foot to foot as I listened to her walk across the kitchen floor. I could tell she still had a slight limp, and it killed my soul.
It also reminded me that I was doing the right thing.
“Graham,” she said. “Hey.”
Her face was still covered with scabs waiting to heal.
“Hey, Cindy. How are you feeling?” I asked.
“Better every day,” she said. “I still need to thank you.”
“Then come to dinner with me,” I said.
“Tonight?”
“Yeah. If you want to thank me, let me treat you to dinner.”
“Graham, I’m not sure if—”
“Or I’ll cook. But I don’t want you to cook. I know you like to, but you need to rest,” I said.
Her eyes were darting around like she was wondering when Paul was going to pull up.
“He’s not here, and he’s not coming back,” I said. “Ever.”
“I know that,” she sighed. “But I still can’t seem to convince myself of it. I’d have to see if Nicole could watch Lily,” Cindy said.
“That’s fine. I’ll come over and get you around seven or so.”
“Okay. Sounds good.”
Two hours later, the two of us were heading to the outskirts of town. I knew Cindy was still hesitant about being seen in public because she didn’t want to be more fodder for the town gossip mill than she already was. She was trying so hard to keep things as normal as possible for Lily. Fortunately, I knew about a great diner tucked away in a small corner of town. Not many people frequented the place, but they had great milkshakes.
And with Cindy’s jaw still bruised up a bit, she probably wouldn’t be up for eating anything solid.
“Cindy, I’m so sorry,” I began.
“For what?” she asked.
“For everything you’ve been through. Had it not been for me, you would never have been put in that situation with Paul.”
“You think what happened to me was your fault?” she asked.
“Our relationship triggered his unraveling,” I said.
“If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn't be alive right now, Graham. He tried to force himself on me. He tried to kill me. He said all these things about raising Lily on his own and…”
I watched her shiver as our waitress set her milkshake in front of her.
“I still would’ve been in danger because of him,” Cindy said. “I declined his advances, and it would’ve pissed him off enough eventually for him to do what he did. But you wouldn’t have been there to save me.”
“You would’ve called 911 instead of me had I not been there.”
“And they wouldn’t have gotten to me in time. You know that. I owe you my life, Graham.”
“You owe me nothing,” I said.
“I would’ve been in danger with no one to turn to,” she said with tears in her eyes. “Thank you. For saving me.”
She reached out for my hand, and I took it. Even in her fragile state, her touch could still send shivers down my spine. I heaved a heavy sigh as a plate of hot French fries were set between us, but she didn’t let go of my hand.
I could feel her trembling as tears rolled down her cheeks.
“Everything happens for a reason,” she said. “There was a reason I met you. There was a reason you came into my life.”
“Cindy.”
“No. Let me finish,” she said. “There are times where I felt like angels were watching over me after Bradley died. There were moments of peace I couldn't explain and moments of relief I had nothing to attribute to. But with you, I feel all those things all the time. You’re my angel, Graham, and I think, in a way, I’m yours.”
Fuck. I wished Cindy would stop talking. Her words were making this harder than it already was for me. I felt tears rising in my eyes as I pulled her hand to my lips. I kissed each knuckle on her hand as my eyes studied the bruise around her wrist. She was so beautiful. And she was right. She had been my heaven-sent angel sent to pull from within me things I never thought I would feel with another woman ever again.
Which only heightened my need to protect her.
“I can’t keep putting you in danger,” I said.
“Graham, you didn’t put me in danger,” she said.
“I have to go.”
“What?” she asked.
“Even though my name has been cleared and even though Paul is gone, there’s an entire criminal network out there who I can only assume still wants me dead. I can’t stay. I can’t keep putting you at risk with decisions I’ve made. I already lost one family to it. I won’t lose another.”
“Graham, please don’t,” she said.
“I don’t have a choice. I care for you, Cindy. You and Lily. And I won’t stick around and watch you get hurt again because I can’t shake you off.”
“There’s another way. I know there is. You don’t have to run. That isn’t always the answer.”
“I’m sorry, Cindy. I wanted to tell you in person because, after all you’ve been through, it’s the absolute least you deserve.”
“And what about you, huh? What do you deserve?” she asked me.
I felt my jaw trembling as I tried to keep my tears at bay.
“I know you don’t understand now, but you will,” I said.