Ewan heard a scream, a loud guttering shout filled with immense sorrow, anger, and frustration from somewhere nearby.
He didn’t realize until he felt the rough flesh beneath his hands, until he heard the pleading words floating around him—loud yet stifled at the same time—that the shout had come from him; that after Fiona’s last declaration, he had lost control.
When he felt hands grabbing his shoulders, pulling him away from the flesh he was strangling with all his might, he realized that the rough flesh was Fiona’s neck—and that he had been choking her, almost to the point of death.
"Ewan...please...I’m...sorry..." Her mangled voice finally reached his ears, and he let go.
Not because he was concerned about how ashen she looked, but because he heard Old Mr. Thorne calling out to him. Even Sandro.
Sandro? Ewan frowned, pushing away from Fiona as if she were a bag of dirt—though she was literally that—and turned aside, his frown deepening when he saw Sandro and Zane standing right behind him.
How? Had he fallen into one of those dreams?
His eyes scanned the room. The resignation and pity on the faces of the people, including Spider’s agents, were more than enough to inform him of the reality of the situation. He had snapped. Almost killed Fiona as a result. And his friends were here.
When had they arrived? How long had he lost it?
He reverted his gaze to Fiona. "You will pay for this." He said through gritted teeth, his eyes reddening. "I will make sure you and your miserable family pay for ruining my life, because this right here isn’t enough!"
Fiona shook, hands around her throat, coughing, abject fear wrapping her in an embrace.
"Even your mother, who claimed to be apologetic and all, will pay for her wickedness. I’ll make sure of that." Ewan swore, hands trembling—this time holding back the faucet, mentally cutting off the supply of tears.
He wasn’t going to cry because of the actions of bastards. If he wanted to let go, it would be in private! Where he could punch the wall until his fingers cracked! Where he could scream at the unfairness of it all!
"But my mother..." Fiona’s lips quaked, not yet at ease—even with Florence trying to calm Ewan down.
"Would have saved me some stress if she had told me the full truth during the court case. She sought to protect your stupid family, even after knowing your murderous acts—yours and your father’s. And she will pay for that..."
Ewan promised vehemently, allowing Florence to lead him back to his seat.
Once seated, his eyes found Athena. She was still in the same position—calm, yet battling with astonishment and disbelief. Of course, this was all too much for her to take in.
"When did you two get here?" Ewan finally asked his two friends.
"A while ago. We’ve been listening from outside, not wanting to interrupt the moment... well, until you decided to get your hands dirty." Sandro answered with a shrug.
"I have no qualms getting my hands dirty," Ewan retorted, frowning.
"Yeah, but you might regret it later. And there’s the fact that you swore not to go down this rabbit hole again...Let Connor do his job." Zane said, taking a seat beside Susan and exhaling deeply.
Athena was Cecilia Thorne and Ewan’s savior. It would seem that Ewan had been right to suspect she was the one. He rubbed his face gently, facing Fiona.
Her family really deserved to be punished.
"Fiona..." Old Mr. Thorne’s cold voice, clear as crystal, broke through the moment, grabbing Fiona’s attention.
She shuddered beneath his gaze, wondering if she should have tweaked the truth a little. But did it matter? She was tired of lying about this. Tired of everything. Maybe she was tired of living. Maybe it was time to join Aunt Miley in heaven.
Will she even be accepted there?
"Continue with your story." The old man commanded, breaking her thoughts.
A pause, as he crossed his legs, brows furrowed. "Didn’t Ewan’s parents suspect a thing when Ewan started seeing you as a savior? Didn’t they see the bracelet? I’m sure Samuel would have recognized the bracelet."
And if Ewan’s father had seen little Athena—his mother too—they might have known she was a Thorne. They would have recognized Emily’s bracelet. All this would have been resolved long ago.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Dark Revenge Of An Unwanted Wife The Twins Are Not Yours