It wasn’t your decision. Don’t take this from her because you’re too selfish to let her go.
“Fuuuuck!” He poured his rage toward the setting sun. There was no way he could hide from this. Icing over the hurt and anger wouldn’t work. Fury spilled through the cracks in his defenses.
Nana was gone.
She did it on purpose.
Made the decision to leave them behind, consequences be damned.
Each new thought scraped away at his grasp on calm.
He’d have Doctor Phillips arrested. Thrown in jail to rot, for helping with such a horrendous decision. The asshole looked Jonathan in the eye and offered his condolences.God. Why did this hurt so fucking much?
He needed to sit down. He stumbled toward a rock near the cabin, and almost tripped on something sticking out of the sand. The corner of a box, exposed by the recent storm.
He knelt and started digging, not sure why. The wet dirt was easy to pile aside, and within moments, he dug out a space around a small wooden chest. The iron bindings on it were rusted and corroded, and the top slipped askew when he tugged it out of its hole. He wouldn’t need the key after all. Even with the damage to the lock, there was no doubt in his mind the two went together.
He flipped the lid open. Water-logged foil blinked back at him in the dying sunlight. It had separated from the chocolate coins it used to encase.
A shout of frustration built inside, and he yelled into the evening, as he fell back on his ass in the wet sand.Fucking hell.He wanted this pain to stop.
*
IT WAS AFTER ELEVENwhen Bailey heard the front door click open. She was on her feet in an instant, to meet Jonathan. It didn’t matter what kind of mood he was in, as long as he was safe. She stopped short when he entered the house and stared straight at her, eyes dark and mouth pinched in pain. He was covered in sand, and half of him was wet.
She hovered a few feet back from him, unsure what to say. He obviously wasn’t all right, so asking didn’t make sense. “I was worried.”
“I didn’t realize it was so late. I’m sorry I left you alone.” Despite his haunted expression, his voice was flat.
“I’ll get you a towel.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
Now what? She searched his face, not finding answers but hoping something would come to her.
“I should have asked for a fucking autopsy. Demanded one. How naïve was I, to acceptnatural causeswhen there was nothing wrong with her? What Phillips did is illegal,” he said.
“He prescribed painkillers to an old woman who was in pain.”
“You and I both know that’s not why he did it. Did he even try and deny it when you asked him?”
She hated that monotone voice. “He said she wanted us to know.”
“Was she unhappy?”
“No.” Bailey poured as much reassurance as she could into the reply. “Not that I ever saw. All the way up to the end, she was friendly and social and still matchmaking.”
“Then why?”
“I’ve told you what I know. She had her reasons.”
He scowled. “You sound like you agree with her.”
“I don’t know. I miss her. I know the loss you feel is even greater, but it still tears me apart that she’s gone. This is like hearing the news all over again, but ten billion times worse. I trusted her, though. She saved my life, and I would have done the same if I could, but not if she didn’t want it.” Bailey’s throat was raw by the time she finished talking.
“I guess you’re a better person than I am. I can’t forgive this.” He stepped around her, and the stairs creaked with his weight.
For the second time today, she let him go.