Chapter 152 Rotten secret

Chapter 152 Rotten secret
~CLAIRE'S POV~

I stopped. I didn't turn around right away. I just listened to the wind coming off the river.

I knew I should keep walking. I should get in my car, lock the doors, and drive back to the man who actually gave a damn about me. 

But I was exhausted. I needed five minutes where I wasn't fighting a war or cutting off my own mother.

I turned around.

I walked over to the wooden bench. I looked down at him. Richard didn't move to make room. He just stared up at me with red, bloodshot eyes.

To my own surprise, I sat down on the far edge of the bench.

Richard blinked, genuinely shocked. He had expected me to run.

We sat in silence for a long minute. I took in his appearance from the corner of my eye. He looked incredibly tired. 

The handsome, chiseled face was still there, but it was hidden under days of dark stubble and ash-gray skin. 

The Richard I knew was pristine. Privileged. Perfect.

This man just looked rough. Broken.

"Is Alexander waiting around the corner to break my jaw again?" Richard asked, his voice scraping like sandpaper.

I shook my head, staring out at the gray water. "No. I'm alone."

Richard let out a breath that sounded like a dry laugh. "A miracle."

"How is the manhunt for Monica?" I asked, keeping my voice entirely conversational. "She's been awfully quiet since she escaped David's little horror show."

Richard's posture stiffened. "I will find her."

"And then what, Richard?"

"I will make her pay," he said, his tone dropping to a dark, ugly place.

I scoffed. I couldn't help it. I turned my head to look at him fully.

"Hearing you say that sounds so strange," I told him. 

"You're talking about the woman you left me for. The woman you chose. The woman you claimed to love so much you served me divorce papers while I was bleeding in a hospital bed."

Richard flinched. He literally shrank back from the words. "I wasn't in my clear mind, Claire. You know that now. You saw the medical reports. She poisoned me."

"Did she?" I leaned my head. "Did Monica cause you to neglect me for two years before she even moved in? Did those drugs make you treat me worse than a beggar in our own home?"

He opened his mouth to speak.

"Did she drug you into forgetting our anniversary?" I pressed.

Richard closed his mouth. He looked at the ground. He had absolutely nothing to say.

"I thought as much," I said coldly.

I stood up. The five minutes of peace were over. The cold wind was seeping through my blazer, and sitting next to him was making my skin crawl.

"Claire, wait." Richard scrambled up from the bench. "Do you really plan on doing this? Do you really plan on making me pay until there's nothing left?"

"I want you to suffer, Richard," I said simply.

Richard laughed. It was a hysterical, manic sound that made him look completely unhinged. He ran a hand through his messy hair.

"What can I do?" he pleaded, stepping toward me. 

"Tell me what the price is. What can I do so we can put this behind us? Come back to me, Claire. We can pretend the last five years didn't happen. We can start over."

I stared at him, marveling at the sheer, unfiltered delusion.

"Maybe if you die," I said softly. "Maybe then I might consider forgiving you."

My phone started ringing in my pocket.

The vibration jolted the tension in the air. I pulled it out. 

The screen lit up with Alexander's name. He had realized I was gone. He was probably tearing the hospital apart looking for me.

I looked back at Richard.

"If you have nothing else to say," I said, my thumb hovering over the green accept button, "have a good night, Richard."

I turned to walk to my car.

"What if I tell you about his rotten secrets?"

My thumb stopped. My feet stopped. The wind seemed to die down completely.

"What did you say?" I asked, looking over my shoulder.

Richard walked toward me. He didn't look broken anymore. He looked like a man who had just found a loaded gun on the sidewalk.

He stopped right in front of me. Close enough that I could smell the stale alcohol on his breath. He reached up, his fingers brushing a stray strand of hair away from my face. 

I shook at the contact, but I didn't pull away.

"The man you claim you love," Richard whispered, his eyes locking onto mine. "If you want to know every damn detail... give me your time. Sit back down. And I will tell you everything you need to know about the monster you're sleeping with."

The phone in my hand kept vibrating. Alexander. Alexander. Alexander.

I knew I shouldn't listen to him. I knew I should answer the phone, tell Alexander to meet me at the penthouse, and drive away from Richard forever.

I knew I needed to trust Alexander.

But did Alexander trust me? Eleanor had warned me. David had warned me. Now Richard. 

Alexander swore he had no secrets that could ruin us, but he had looked me dead in the eye and lied about keeping me in the dark before. 

Would he ever actually tell me the truth about his past?

No. I knew he wouldn't. He would bury it to protect me.

I looked down at the glowing screen.

I hit the red button. Call Declined.

I looked back up at Richard. A wide, victorious smile was spreading across his chapped lips. He thought he had won me back. 

He thought he had hooked me.

"You got me, you bastard," I said.