Sadie
The house felt empty without Cyrus. It was strange. There were still staff members around and security guards, but it seemed as though a significant presence was absent. Like something was missing from the estate.
I maintained a cheery expression for Megan’s sake, but inside, I was a mess. I was afraid for Cyrus’ safety, first and foremost. Despite his confidence that Ralph wouldn’t dare do anything to him specifically, I wasn’t so certain. If Ralph was desperate enough, who knows what he’d try and who he’d go after?
Apart from that, though, I just missed him like crazy. He’d only been gone a few hours, but it felt so much longer. I didn’t really understand why I was so desperate for him to come back. It was only going to be a couple of days…it wasn’t an unreasonable amount of time. Maybe it was because things between us were so undefined. We were together, but we weren’t, and it was hard not to let my insecurities creep into the edge of my mind without Cyrus around to put them at ease.
I needed to distract myself, or I’d go insane waiting to hear from him. I focused my attention on Megan, trying as hard as I could to keep her from thinking about her uncle. We played and read books together, and by lunchtime, she appeared to be much more at ease than when Cyrus had first left. I was still a wreck, but I kept it in check, smiling and laughing with the little girl, so that the atmosphere around her remained light and cheery.
As we finished lunch, Megan asked, “Can we go out to the garden?”
I smiled at her and nodded. “Of course, sweetie. Do you want to see the daffodils?”
“Yes,” she replied with an eager smile.
I cleared our plates and found her shoes, and within a few minutes, we were making our way outside to the lush garden. This spot had become one of my favorites on the property. Megan skipped ahead of me a bit as we walked along the graveled path. I watched her with a small smile, feeling momentarily better in the face of her joyful innocence.
“Can we go through the maze?” Megan suddenly asked, turning to look back at me.
“Sure, honey,” I nodded. “Just don’t wander away from me, okay?”
“I won’t,” she promised.
I reached out my hand toward her, and she took it. Together, we made our way to the hedge maze. It wasn’t overly complicated, but it wouldn’t take much for a little kid to get turned around and lost in it. Megan always enjoyed wandering through the maze, however, so we had some rules in place so we could get through it without issue.
I let Megan take the lead as we wound our way through the hedges. I spaced out a bit, soaking in the sunlight and enjoying the cool breeze, not paying much attention to my surroundings. Despite my worries for Cyrus, I felt at ease on the estate. I knew that place so well by that point that I didn’t think there was anything that could surprise me.
So, when a figure suddenly stumbled out of the bushes and into the path ahead of us, I let out a scream. I instinctively yanked on Megan’s hand and pulled her behind me. She let out a startled cry.
The next moment, I recognized the haggard-looking man stumbling toward us.
“Ralph?” I gasped. “What…what the hell?”
“I need to see Megan,” he declared, his eyes zeroing in on the little girl. “I need to see my daughter.”
“Ralph, you need to leave,” I said in a firm voice. “You’re not supposed to be here.”
“That’s my daughter,” Ralph insisted, though he stopped and didn’t advance further. “I have every right to see her.”
“You don’t,” I snapped. “Cyrus has custody of her. You need to go through the courts if you want any visitation with her.”
Not that I thought he stood any chance of winning a custody case, but I knew I needed to try and reason with him. To calm him down. The wild look in his eyes frightened me, but he didn’t appear high, so I took some comfort in that. Still, this situation was terrifying and unpredictable, and I needed to do everything I could to keep Megan safe.
“Please,” he begged. “I’m not the man I was. I’m clean…I’m turning my life around. I deserve to have my daughter back.”
“You don’t deserve anything,” I growled. “Not after what you did.”
I watched an array of emotions play across his face. Sorrow. Regret. Rage.
The rage scared me.
“It was an accident,” he said, his voice choking. “I will regret that day for the rest of life. You have no idea the agony my life has been ever since I lost her.”
I fought to keep my breathing even. Megan grasped the back of my skirt. I could feel her trembling, and it made my stomach twist. I needed to get her away from here. Away from him.
“Ralph, you need to go,” I ordered. “You’re not helping yourself at all right now. You’re going to go to prison if you keep this up. You need to stay away from Megan if you ever want to have a chance of being a part of her life.”
“Who are you to tell me if I can see my daughter or not?” Ralph spat. “You’re just the help!”
“All right, that’s enough,” I barked. He was switching tactics. Insulting me to try and break me down. To try and intimidate me. I needed to end this. “You need to get out of here. I’m taking Megan back to the house, and if you go now, I won’t tell Cyrus you were here. Just go back to the city, and we’ll pretend this never happened.”
I didn’t take my eyes off him as I began backing away, keeping Megan firmly behind me.
“I’m not leaving,” he said with a shake of his head. “Not without my daughter.”
“Megan, sweetie,” I murmured. “We need to go back to the house, okay? You go ahead. I’ll be right behind you.”
“I’m scared, Sadie,” she whimpered. “I don’t want daddy to hurt you.”
My heart broke at those words, spoken in such a fragile, little voice. I knew at that moment that I didn’t care what happened to me so long as I did everything I could to protect the tiny, frightened girl clinging to me.
Raising my chin, I met Ralph’s gaze and firmly stated, “This is enough. I’m taking Megan, and we’re going inside. Goodbye.”
Reaching back, I grabbed Megan’s hand and turned to take her back to the house, though I didn’t stop looking back to see what Ralph did.
I felt my heart sink when I saw that he followed us.
Chapter 55
Cyrus
It felt like an eternity before I reached the estate. Ralph had several hours of a head start, at least, and Sadie wasn’t answering her phone.
“Pick up, damn it,” I said, clenching my phone so hard I was surprised I didn’t crack it. “Why aren’t you answering?”
I tried one more time, but still, she didn’t pick up.
A million thoughts were running through my head, and none of them were good. I couldn’t stop imagining all sorts of terrible scenarios. I was growing more and more afraid that I was going to be too late. What would Ralph do to them if he got to them first? I didn’t want to believe that he’d actually hurt Megan, but Sadie? Ralph had no reason not to hurt her if he thought she was in his way.
When I finally reached the estate, I was in a state of utter panic. I sped up the driveway and came to a screeching stop in front of the house. Throwing open the car door, I bolted to the front door and burst into the house.
“Sadie!” I called out. “Megan?”
When there was no answer, I ran up the stairs to the second floor. I continued calling their names, but there was still no response.
Shit, where were they?
“Sadie?” I bellowed. “Answer me!”
Still, nothing. I ripped through the second floor, going from room to room in a desperate attempt to find them. When I entered the library, the windows overlooking the garden were open. I stopped when I heard voices coming from outside. Rushing to the window, I looked out, but I couldn’t see anyone.
I paused and listened carefully.
“Get away!”
It was Sadie. I couldn’t tell exactly where her voice was coming from, but it sounded like it was coming from the hedge maze.
I turned and sprinted out of the library and back down the stairs. I made my way to the back of the house and out onto the terrace. Once outside, I could hear more yelling, and I headed straight for it.
My heart was in my throat, and cold sweat had broken out along my forehead. I was so terrified of what I’d find when I reached them. The closer I got, the clearer Sadie’s voice became.
“I said enough!” she shouted, her tone fierce. “Get away!”
Gnashing my teeth, I clenched my fists and ran as hard as I could. When I reached the entrance to the hedge maze, I paused to take in the scene before me. Sadie stood, facing down a haggard-looking Ralph, who had a hold of her wrist. Megan cowered behind Sadie, who glared at my bastard ex-brother-in-law like a furious mama bear.
“I said let me go!” she snarled, yanking her arm to try and break Ralph’s hold on her. “I swear to God, Ralph, you’ll regret this!”
I stared at her, my chest swelling with pride. She was putting herself in harm’s way to protect Megan. She was terrifying and awesome, and I realized at that moment just how much I loved her. I wanted this woman to be mine in every possible way. I wanted to shout from the rooftops that she was my woman and that I was her man.
When all this was over, I’d do just that. I’d tell Sadie exactly how I felt about her and beg her to be with me if need be. For the moment, though, I needed to handle this mess.
My eyes narrowed in on Ralph’s hand around Sadie’s wrist, and my fury exploded into an inferno.
With a roar, I charged forward.
“Let her go!” I bellowed.
Ralph jumped and released her immediately. His eyes went wide with obvious fear as I closed in on him, hellfire burning in my gaze.