Chapter 7 The collision of two worlds
The parking lot of the shopping center felt far too small for the amount of tension suddenly radiating between our two groups. The golden hour light was hitting the black paint of the Blackwood SUV, making it glow like a dark omen. I stood there, rooted to the spot, my heart hammering a frantic rhythm against my ribs. I had been so caught up in seeing Victor—seeing him out of that basement, seeing him in the "real world"—that I had momentarily forgotten the man standing three feet behind me.
"Elena?" Liam’s voice was like a low warning bell.
I blinked, finally pulling my gaze away from Victors’s dark, curious eyes. "Oh! Liam, sorry. This is... this is Mrs. Blackwood and Victor. My employers."
Liam stepped forward, his posture stiffening, his hand instinctively reaching out to grip my shoulder. It was a possessive gesture, one I’d seen a thousand times, but today it felt heavy. "Nice to meet you," Liam said, though his tone was anything but nice. It was clipped, defensive. "I’m Liam, Elena’s boyfriend."
Mrs. Blackwood gave a curt, elegant nod, her expression unreadable. But Victor... Victor didn't look away. He leaned back in his chair, a slow, predatory smirk spreading across his face. He looked Liam up and down with the kind of bored arrogance that only old money can buy.
"The boyfriend," Victor drawled, his voice vibrating with a subtle mockery. "I’ve heard so much about you. The garage, the cabins... the 'safe' choice."
Liam’s grip on my shoulder tightened. "I don’t know what she told you, but we were in the middle of our vacation. We have things to do."
"I’m sure you do," Victor replied, his eyes flickering back to mine. "But your 'nanny' here seemed quite excited to see me. Almost like she was bored with the scenery at the creek."
"Victor, that’s enough," Mrs. Blackwood intervened, though she sounded more bored than angry. "We should be going. The estate is waiting."
I stood there, paralyzed, watching as they began to load the SUV. Before he was moved back into the van, Victor caught my eye one last time. He didn't say anything, but the look was a challenge—a reminder of the "spark" we’d talked about in the garden.
The drive back to our cabin was silent, but it wasn't the peaceful silence of the forest. It was a vibrating, electric tension that threatened to shatter the windshield. The second we stepped inside the small A-frame, Liam exploded.
"What the hell was that, Elena?" he shouted, slamming the door behind us. "You went from being a ghost for two days to acting like a schoolgirl with a crush the second that guy showed up! You didn't even introduce me properly. You were too busy staring at him!"
"I was just surprised to see them, Liam! It’s a coincidence!" I yelled back, my own frustrations boiling over.
"A coincidence? He has your number! He’s texting you about movies! And you... you look at him like he’s the sun and I’m just some shadow in the background." Liam stepped into my space, his eyes wild. "Is that why you said his name in bed? Because you’re already imagining being in that mansion with him?"
"It’s not like that!" I cried, but the lie felt thin, even to me.
"I’m done, Elena. I came here to save us, but I think I’m just watching us drown."
Liam grabbed his car keys and walked out, the screen door banging against the frame. I sank onto the small wooden sofa, burying my face in my hands. The peace I had come here for was gone, replaced by the haunting realization that no matter where I went, the Blackwood name was etched into my soul.
I reached into my bag and pulled out my phone. One new message.
Mr. Grinch: He’s not enough for you, Elena. You know it. I know it. Come back to the Hill.
I stared at the screen, a single tear falling onto the glass. I was lost in a storm of my own making, and for the first time, I wasn't sure if I wanted to be saved.
The heavy thud of the cabin door hitting the wall made me bolt upright in bed, my heart hammering against my ribs. The scent reached me before he did—the sharp, bitter sting of cheap whiskey. Liam stumbled into the room, his eyes bloodshot and unfocused. He wasn't the steady, gentle man I’d loved for years; he was a stranger fueled by liquid rage.
"Elena! Wake up!" he bellowed, kicking the base of the bed. "Wake up and tell me what’s your obsession with that paralyzed man! Is it the money? The fancy house? Or do you just like playing the little hero to a guy who can’t even stand up you hore?"
I scrambled back against the headboard, clutching the quilt to my chest. "Liam, you’re drunk. You’ve never even had more than a beer in front of me. Please, sit down."
"Don’t tell me what to do!" he roared, pointing a shaking finger at me. "I saw the way you looked at him at the shopping center. You were glowing, Elena. You haven't looked at me like that in months. You’re here with me, but you’re wishing his hands were the ones touching you. That’s why you said his name, isn’t it?"
"It’s a job, Liam! He’s a broken man who needs help!" I screamed back, tears finally spilling over. "Why can’t you trust me?"
"Because you don't even trust yourself!" Liam laughed, a harsh, jagged sound. "You’re in love with a ghost and a paycheck. I’m done being the placeholder until you figure out how to climb into his bed. I’m done, Elena. We’re done."
The words felt like a physical blow. "Liam, don't say that. We’re supposed to be on vacation. We’re supposed to fix this."
"There’s nothing left to fix," he spat, his voice dropping to a deadly, quiet hiss. "Go back to your 'Prince' on the Hill. See if his gold can keep you warm at night."
He grabbed a pillow and a stray blanket from the chair, stumbling toward the small guest alcove near the kitchen. He didn't look back. The sound of the door clicking shut between us was the final nail in the coffin of the last three years. I collapsed back onto the mattress, the silence of the cabin now feeling like a tomb.