“That’s not nearly enough,” Mom tells me, her broken heart resting in pieces before me. “She lost everything that night, and you think you can make up for it by throwing a bit of money at the problem? That is such a childish view of the world. You’re a father now, Tanner. How would you feel if that had been Bri, and your child ran in to save her? Would you accept anything less than justice?”

  I shake my head, knowing damn well she’s right.

  “While I’m sure she is appreciative of the help you have given her, it is also an insult to rub your money in her face. Every time the cash shows up, I wonder what goes through her head? That some rich kid is paying for his guilt? Giving her hush money to keep quiet? None of that is ever going to erase the memories of that monster forcing himself inside her, and it sure as hell will never bring her son back to her.”

  I hang my head, the weight of everything I’ve done paralyzing me.

  “That woman needs justice, and you need to start making amends for what you’ve done,” Mom tells me. “I don’t know how, but I know that you’re better than this. You’re not that scared little boy anymore, Tanner, and I refuse to let you be anything like your father. You will acknowledge your mistakes and then you’ll learn from them. Is that clear? Even if it means putting yourself in a less than respectable position. Nothing is more important than giving that woman the closure and justice she deserves; no football career, no college, nothing. She is your first priority. Do you hear me, Tanner Morgan? Standing back and doing the bare minimum is unacceptable.”

  I nod. “I hear you, Mom,” I tell her. “I want to do better, I just don’t know how. What am I supposed to do? How can I start to make this right without putting you, Addie, and Bri at risk?”

  Mom shakes her head. “I’m sorry, love, but that’s not for me to decipher. I don’t know how to fix this, and I can’t give you the answers, but just know that I have faith in you to do the right thing.”

  With that, Mom stands and glances down at the papers spread across the table. “Clean this up, please,” she says. “I don’t want Addison stumbling across these photographs. She adores you, and the last thing she needs is to learn her big brother had a hand in seeing an innocent woman being raped.”

  I couldn’t agree more.

  Reaching across the table, I start gathering the papers as Mom turns and starts walking out of the dining room with her glass in hand. I find myself calling to her, every last piece of me torn to shreds, though if this is how I’m feeling, I can’t even imagine what it’s like for her. “Mom,” I murmur, hoping to God she still loves me. She turns back and meets my eyes, the usual spark absent from her gaze. “Are we okay?”

  She presses her lips into a hard line and truly considers her response. “I’m hurt, Tanner. Every step I take, my world crumbles just that little bit more. First your father, and now this. It’s a lot to process, but just know that I love you. You are my son, and I am so proud of the man you’ve grown into, but your actions and deceit have hurt my heart.” She pauses for just a moment, gathering herself. “I just need time to process, Tanner. I’m sure you can understand that.”

  I nod and let her go, desperately wishing things could be different.

  Chapter 30

  BRIELLE

  The thought of leaving Tanner to deal with his mother’s wrath kills me, but this is something he needed to face alone. They needed a private, deep, and personal conversation. I just hate how I left him there in the garage. I felt like I was betraying him in some way, like I was leaving him to face down the flames of hell by himself. I just hope to God he doesn’t get burned.

  I skip over the small hedge between our properties and stare up at Orlando’s house. The last thing I want to do is stay the night here, but what choice do I have? I’m sure climbing the tree and scaling Tanner’s roof isn’t in my best interest tonight, not when his mom has so much going on that needs to be worked through.

  Walking up to the door, I let out a heavy breath before reaching up and feeling the top of the doorframe for the spare key. It looks like all the lights are out inside, so maybe I’ll be lucky enough to get through the night undetected.

  Turning the key, I unlock the door and slip inside, trying to be as quiet as humanly possible. It’s pitch-black inside, and I grope along the wall, searching for the railing for the stairs.

  My foot hits the bottom step and just as I go to make my way upstairs, a voice cuts through the silence. “What do you think you’re doing sneaking in here in the middle of the night?” my mother questions.

  I pause, whipping around and searching the darkness, and if I squint just enough, I can make out her silhouette in the living room, sitting in the dark with nothing but the glow of the streetlight through the window.

  I cut across the foyer to the entrance of the sitting area, my brows furrowing as I take her in. “Why are you sitting here in the dark?” I question, hesitation thick in my tone. I creep a little closer, my gaze sweeping the rest of the room, making sure we’re alone.

  Mom turns to face me and I gasp, falling back against the wall as I see the dark bruises and swelling around her eyes. “Oh, Brielle,” she cries. “My sweet, sweet angel. I am so sorry I got us involved in all of this, but you shouldn’t be here. You can’t be here, do you understand me? I can’t have you here.”

  “I know,” I say, my heart breaking as I rush deeper into the sitting room, dropping to my knees before her. I take her hands and look up at her, my heart breaking seeing the state that asshole has left her in. Despite the bullshit that’s lingered between us over the past few months, I still love my mom, and I can’t bear to see her like this, nor will I sit back and do nothing about it. “You need to get out of here. You can’t stay. I won’t let you, not when he’s hurting you like this.”

  She rests her hand against my face and gives me a tight smile, her eyes expressing every emotion passing through her. “It’s not that easy,” she tells me. “If there was a way, I would have packed us both up and taken you away a long time ago, but there’s no where I can go where he won’t find us.”

  “Mom,” I say, using a firmer tone. “I don’t care what he wants or thinks, you are not staying here.”

  “I’m sorry, my sweet girl, I know you don’t like seeing me like this. I know our relationship has been strained over the past few months, but just know there has been a reason for everything I have done. All I want is to protect you, even if it means hurting you. Just trust me when I tell you that you need to get out of this house. You need to get as far away from this place as you can. Go and be free, enjoy your life with Tanner and be happy.”

  I shake my head and stand up, pulling at her hands. “Come on,” I insist. “I’ll help you pack. We’ll find a cheap motel and pay cash. We’ll go somewhere he can’t track us.”

  “Believe me,” she says, pulling back on her hand, refusing to budge. “If I could, I would, but there’s so much more going on that you simply don’t understand, and I don’t want you here to find out the hard way. Just please, Brielle. Please just go.”

  I scoff, anger starting to burst through my chest, hating how hard she’s making this. I can’t save her if she doesn’t want to be saved. “You mean his sick fascination with me?” I spit, watching as her face drops, realization in her eyes. “You mean how you’ve married him simply to keep him from doing the same to me? I know it all, Mom. I know what you’re doing, and I don’t want you putting yourself in this position to save me. You can’t live like this. It’s getting worse. The bruises are getting harder to hide, and soon enough, he won’t be able to stop himself. How much of this can you take before he kills you? I just … I don’t understand why you’d put yourself through all of this. Does he have something on you? Is he threatening you?

  Mom sobs and I rush in, throwing my arms around her, knowing I’m right, and whatever it is, it’s enough to push mom to strength lengths. “How long have you known about all of this?” she questions.

  “A few weeks,” I admit. “Orlando made some comments to Tanner, threatening him and boasting about his plans for me, and we’ve been putting together all the little pieces. I get it, Mom. You’ve been hurting me to force me away, pushing me out the door and making me not want to come back, but you’re my mom. I love you, and no matter how much you push me away, I’m going to keep coming back. I just wish I knew how we got here.”

  She shakes her head, pulling back enough to wipe her eyes, only to cringe when she touches the swelling. “Honestly, honey,” she says, completely defeated. “I don’t even know myself. The first few dates seemed authentic and I truly believed we were starting something real. He was charming and the perfect gentleman, promising to save us from Hope Falls and give us this luxurious new life, but then I started to see through the cracks and he became controlling and dangerous. One second, I was falling for him, the next he was threatening to expose some ugly truths about the woman I was before I had you and your brother, and I just … please trust me when I tell you those things cannot see the light of day.”

  “Mom,” I whisper, searching her eyes.

  She shakes her head, refusing to get into details with me. “I saw him looking up your socials, zooming in on your images, and when I confronted him about it, he just … snapped. It’s why I took off to Paris without you and married the bastard. I wanted to put distance there and tie him up in legal documents, yet the more I keep you away, the more he becomes obsessed with this idea of having you close. You should see him, honey,” she says, devastation in her tone. “When you’d come home and hang out by the pool with your friends, he’d stand at the window watching you, and I’d have to come up with an excuse to pull him away. It’s sickening. He thinks I’m jealous of his little obsession, and for the most part, I just let him believe that because it’s better than him finding out how I’ve been purposefully pushing you away. I just … I’m terrified I’m not enough to hold his attention and sooner or later, he’s going to get bored and go searching for something only you will satisfy for him.”

  My mind reels with all this information, but one thing rests against my soul, darkening it with its ugliness. “But last week when you kicked me out, you did that in front of him.”

  Mom presses her lips into a hard line and glances away. “Yes, I did,” she says. “And I paid greatly for it, but I don’t regret it because it meant you were no longer expected to come home and live under his roof every night,” she sobs, wiping her eyes again. “Do you have any idea how many nights I’ve laid awake, terrified of him slipping out of bed and forcing himself into your room? I would check your door every night, making sure it was locked.”

  My heart shatters for everything she’s had to endure in order to protect me. “What do we do?” I question, gripping her hands.

  She gives me a sad smile. “If I knew the answer to that, I’d already be doing it,” she promises. “I just hope you can forgive me for allowing this monster into our lives.”

  Mom pulls me into a tight hug, holding onto me with everything she’s got, and I hold her right back, every last piece of me completely broken. I can’t stand by and allow this to continue. I have to put an end to it, even if it’s the last thing I do.

  Guilt soars through my chest. For months I’ve hated on my mother, not knowing the horrendous abuse she was going through just to keep me safe. She sacrificed her own safety, her happiness, and her relationship with me to make sure I was protected from this monster. And in return, I hated her. I treated her like shit and spat hurtful words while wishing things could be different. She took the fall for me, throwing herself under the bus to save me from suffering this fate.

  I should have trusted her, should have known my mother would never turn her back on me for a lifestyle with a man who was less than perfect. “I’m so sorry,” I whisper through the dark room. “I’ve treated you so badly and you didn’t deserve it.”

  “You didn’t know,” she argues. “If anything, your anger and frustration only helped make my dismissal seem all that more authentic.”

  “I—” I stop abruptly as a plan begins to form in my mind. I might not be able to get Mom away from Orlando, but maybe I can get Orlando away from the world. “Do you think you could get him out of town tomorrow?” I question. “I think I have an idea.”

  Mom pulls back, her eyes wide as she looks at me. “Oh, honey. No,” she breathes, the fear in her eyes all too real. “Whatever you’re thinking, no. It’s too dangerous. I don’t want you to have anything to do with this. I can handle it myself. I’ll … I’ll come up with something.”

  “Mom, please,” I insist, desperately wishing I knew what he was holding over her. “You need to let me try. If I can just find what I’m looking for, we’ll be okay. I swear, all I need is him out of town for the day to give me freedom to look. I won’t disrupt anything. He’ll have no idea I was looking, but please, Mom. This could be our only chance to save ourselves. You have to let me take it.”

  She presses her lips into a hard line, resignation in her eyes. “I don’t like this.”

  “I know you don’t,” I tell her. “But we’ve always been a team, and I’m not about to let you shoulder this burden on your own. Let me help you.”

  She watches me a moment longer before letting out a sigh. “Okay,” she finally says. “The Country Club has been advertising an art exhibition in Broken Hill. I can suggest a day trip out for that and perhaps dinner afterward. He likes to show off his money and always boasts about how many clients with deep pockets he can screw over in Broken Hill.”

  “Perfect.”

  “I can’t guarantee that he’ll go for it, but I will try.”

  I squeeze her hand. “Thank you, Mom.”

  She nods and just keeps staring at me, her eyes filling with tears all over again. “It’s killed me not to be your support system over the past few months. With everything that’s been happening with Colby and getting stabbed. You’ll never know just how much it broke me not to hold you in that hospital and be there for you. It killed me to see my little girl hurting like that.”

  “It’s okay, Mom,” I whisper. “I understand now, but it’s over. Colby is dead. He can’t hurt me or anyone else ever again.”

  Mom gives me a fond smile before standing, pulling me up with her. “As much as it pains me to send you away, I truly think it’d be best for you to sleep at Tanner’s place tonight. I wouldn’t forgive myself if something happened to you here. Not to mention what your brother would do.”

  I gape at her in horror. “Why hasn’t Damien done anything about this already?”

  “Oh honey, I can’t let him see me like this. He’s got such a promising future ahead of him, and I worry—”

  “That he’ll kill Orlando.”

  Mom presses her lips into a hard line, the truth right there in her eyes. “He’s been having a good time here with Jensen. They’re out partying all the time and enjoying life, and in a few weeks, everything is about to become very serious for the both of them out in the real world. I want to give him this time to be young.”

  I nod, not wanting to tell her just how messed up I think that is, and after giving me one more firm hug, she sends me on my way. I slip out the front door, being careful not to make a sound before cutting back across the lawn and over the hedge.

  Addison and Hudson pull up at the same time, and as Addie bails out of his car, I hear her laughing about Riley’s conversation with Zoe. Apparently he managed not to screw it up and has been talking to her all night.

  “What are you doing out here?” Addison asks, walking up to the front door with me. “I thought you guys left ages ago.”

  “Oh yeah,” I smile. “I umm, I just wanted to check in on my mom.”

  “Really?” she questions, pushing the door open. “I thought you kinda hated your mom.”

  Not knowing how to respond, I just give her a tight smile before walking in behind them and bailing straight up the stairs, hoping to God Tanner has wrapped things up with his mom. I make my way down the hall and gently knock on his door before pushing it open.

  Tanner sits on the edge of his bed, his elbows braced against his knees as he hangs his head. He glances up and his brows furrow. “What are you doing here?” he questions. “I thought you were sleeping in the devil’s lair.”

  “Yeah, I was,” I murmur, stepping into him as he takes my waist, “but I ran into Mom and we talked. She thinks it’s best I sleep here. You know, in case Orlando decides to take a stroll into my room in the middle of the night.”

  His brow arches as he looks up at me. “I’d kill him.”

  “I don’t doubt that,” I tell him.

  “You spoke to your mom?”

  “Mmhmm,” I mumble.

  “You wanna talk about it?”

  I shake my head. “You wanna talk about the discussion with your mom?”

  “Fuck no,” he says. “I’d rather gouge my eyes out with a rusty fork.”

  I give him a beaming smile. “Good,” I say, kicking my shoes off and climbing into his bed. “Then we agree.” And with that, he scoots in beside me, pulls me into his warm arms, and holds me tight, both of us ready to put tonight behind us.

  Chapter 31

  BRIELLE

  Okay, so maybe the black hoodie and tights were overkill, but what else was I supposed to wear to break into Orlando’s office? If I’m going to live the criminal lifestyle, I might as well dress the part, right? Though I have to admit, I kind of hoped that getting through the door and past security would be a little more challenging. I mean, damn, I didn’t even get an adrenaline rush. The code to disable the security system is exactly the same code that he uses at home. Where’s the fun in that?