by Erika Wilde
He sounded so tormented, his words gut-wrenching. “What do you mean, if anything happened to me, too?” she asked curiously. “Are you referring to your parents’ deaths?”
“And my fiancée’s,” he said in a low, raspy voice, shocking her with that information.
Oh, wow . . . he’d been engaged and had clearly lost his fiancée somehow. “I don’t understand. What happened?”
“Four years ago, I watched my fiancée, Natalie, die, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to stop it from happening,” he said, his jaw clenching against the pain she saw reflected in his eyes, and she waited patiently for him to go on. “I was meeting her for lunch at a restaurant about a block away from where she worked, and since she was walking, I waited right outside of the restaurant for her to arrive. I saw her reach the other side of the street, and when it was her right of way to take the crosswalk . . . a goddamn car ran a red light at full speed and hit her. I saw the whole fucking thing happen, and by the time I reached her, she literally took her last few breaths in my arms and died.”
Elle gasped as tears sprang to her eyes, her heart breaking for all this man’s agony and loss. “Hunter . . . I’m so sorry,” she whispered around the emotion filling her throat.
“It was the darkest, most difficult time in my life, and I swore that I’d never put my heart out there for anyone ever again because I was terrified of experiencing that loss again . . .” His dark, golden gaze turned fierce and intense. “And then I met you.”
His feelings for her were implied and mirrored how hard and fast she’d fallen for this man, who’d literally swept her off her feet at a fairy-tale ball. Her mind was spinning, and with so much unresolved in her life, her head and her heart warred within her.
Before she could reply, he said, “I don’t expect you to say anything right now,” he told her, understanding in his voice. “I just wanted . . . no, I need you to know that you mean more to me than a casual fling. And knowing that you could have died, and I would have been helpless to save you, just like my parents and Natalie, completely shatters me when all I want to do is protect you from any harm. Always.”
Aching to touch him, she lifted her hand from the hospital bed and pressed her palm against his cheek. “Hunter, I’m alive because of you,” she said, needing him to see that he’d literally saved her life. “If you hadn’t insisted on staying with me, I might not have made it much longer.”
He groaned and turned his head to kiss the inside of her wrist. “I don’t even want to think about it.”
She smiled at him. “Then it’s a good thing you don’t have to.”
No, the only thing left to think about was what to do with the arsenic poisoning information she had on Helena. Once Elle figured that out, then more than anything, she wanted to open her heart to something more with Hunter.
Chapter 16
By Monday afternoon, the doctor cleared Elle’s recent panel of blood tests and released her from the hospital. Hunter insisted on taking her back to his place until she figured things out, and since she wasn’t quite ready to confront Helena, she agreed. She wanted to be in the right frame of mind to thwart every excuse and denial her stepmother would undoubtedly throw her way in her attempt to dismiss any involvement in the poisoning.
In the time that Elle had been in the hospital, she hadn’t heard from her stepmother, though that didn’t completely surprise her. Helena had never been maternal or sympathetic toward Elle, and probably on another level, she was worried about what, exactly, Elle might know about the arsenic poisoning. She’d probably been scrambling the past two days while Elle was in the hospital to try and absolve herself of any wrong-doing, as well as gotten rid of the tea and evidence. But Claire had witnessed her poisoning attempts and had taken a picture of the bottle of arsenic her mother had used, so Elle still had some proof.
Yesterday, Sunday, Elle had called Penelope from the hospital to tell her what had happened, and after her best friend had gotten over her initial shock, then anger, she’d assured Elle that she’d handle everything at the office until Elle was well enough to return, which she hoped would be in a few days.
“Can I make you something to eat?” Hunter asked, fussing over her as he’d been doing since they’d arrived at his place a few hours ago. “I can heat up the chicken noodle soup I picked up at the market if you want. Or I can make you some scrambled eggs and toast.”
She curled up in the corner of his couch, a blanket draped over her legs and lap. She’d showered, changed into one of his T-shirts and sweatpants, and was feeling so much better, though still a bit tired from the whole ordeal.
“I’m good right now. I promise I’ll eat something soon.”
He sat down on the coffee table in front of her, his brows slightly furrowed. “So, there’s something I need to tell you. It’s something I did without your permission and I’m not sure how you’re going to feel about it.”
She blinked at him, not sure what to make of this suddenly serious man in front of her. “Okay,” she said tentatively.
“I asked my brother, Maddux, to have his PI, Noah Reeves, conduct a thorough background report on Helena,” he said, his gaze holding Elle’s as surprise rippled through her. “I thought it was important that you knew exactly who and what you were up against.”
“I think this weekend was definitely an eye-opener as to who and what I’m up against,” she replied wryly. “Helena must be desperate to get her hands on everything, in any way she can.”
“Seems so.” He paused, then asked a bit hesitantly, “You’re not upset with me for taking those liberties without asking you?”
“No.” She laughed lightly, but her heart felt . . . full. Full of tenderness and affection for this perfect man who’d become her knight in shining armor. No guy, not even Benjamin, had ever cared for her the way that Hunter already did, and it overflowed her with hope for the future. “But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about what a PI might have uncovered on Helena.”
“Maddux dropped the dossier off at my place while we were at the hospital. He also gave me a brief rundown of what’s inside, but I think you need to read it for yourself and make your own conclusions about Helena,” he said, a grave expression on his face.
She swallowed hard, appreciating the obvious warning. “Okay. I’m ready to see it.”
He nodded, then stood up and went to his home office down the hallway, then returned a few seconds later with a folder and handed it to her. He sat down in front of her again, and she inhaled and exhaled a deep breath before opening the file to read the typed report inside about the woman who’d been her cruel and evil stepmother for so many years.
The first page revealed all of Helena’s basic personal information. Her maiden name, her previous married name, and her current one after marrying Elle’s father. Also included were a list of addresses of all the places she’d lived and the jobs she’d worked over the years prior to becoming a Darian and letting Elle’s father support her extravagant lifestyle.
As Elle perused the first few pages, nothing stood out as worrisome, until she came to the outline of Helena’s financial portfolio, which included two prior bankruptcies.
Elle felt her stomach roll as she looked through the ongoing list of Helena’s debts. Over a dozen major credit cards . . . all maxed out and most delinquent on payments, totaling over two hundred thousand dollars in money owed to various creditors. Before Elle could completely digest that shocking information, her gaze fell to the next section of the report, which stated that a second mortgage had been taken out on Elle’s house two months ago in a loan amount of four hundred thousand dollars.
Elle looked up at Hunter in confusion. “I think your PI made a mistake. There is no way that Helena could have taken a second loan on the house and withdrawn all that equity without me knowing. We co-own that house and it requires joint paperwork and signatures.”
“Trust me, Noah Reeves doesn’t make mistakes,” Hunter said of the man who’d compiled all of Helena’
s information, then added more quietly, more somberly, “Turn the page, Elle.”
She suddenly didn’t want to, for fear of what she might see and read next. But she knew she had to find out the entire truth, no matter how gut-wrenching and devastating it might be. The next few sheets of paper were grainy printouts of what appeared to be signature pages from a loan document listing her name, Helena’s name, and the property address of the home they lived in . . . and the loan amount of four hundred thousand dollars that had been paid out as a second mortgage.
“This is impossible …” The whole scenario perplexed Elle until she took a closer look at the signatures on each page. Though the papers had been notarized, her name had not been signed in her handwriting. Someone else had falsified her authorization of the loan.
She blinked, utterly stunned. Another printout from the PI revealed that the bulk of the equity money was now sitting in a savings account under Gwen’s name, to keep Helena’s creditors from seizing the cash to pay off her outstanding debts. Not only had her stepmother stolen all the equity from the house for herself, she’d tried to hide the substantial funds. Holy crap.
Elle glanced up at Hunter, her mind spinning, though one thing was crystal clear. “Helena committed fraud.”
Hunter nodded. “Yes.”
“This explains why she refused to take a second loan, or even sell the house. Because her deceit would have been brought to light.”
“So she poisoned you to prevent you from finding out,” Hunter said, his thoughts echoing Elle’s.
She shook her head. “I don’t want to believe any of this, but all the information in this report makes everything that’s been happening with Helena make sense.”
“What are you going to do?” Hunter asked gently.
So many feelings swirled inside Elle. Anger. Hurt. Sadness.
But rising above it all was a sudden emotional and mental strength, stemming from all she’d endured, giving her the courage and fortitude to do what she should have demanded a long time ago.
“I’m going to take back everything that is rightfully mine.”
The following morning, Hunter drove Elle back to her house, unsure of what to expect once they arrived. She’d spent the rest of the night in a quiet and subdued mood, and he’d respected her need to think things through, to take the time to digest all she’d learned . . . because what she’d read in the PI report had undoubtedly rocked her world.
Elle would confront her stepmother in whatever way was right for her, personally. In a way that resolved everything she’d been through since her father’s passing. As much as Hunter wanted to slay this dragon for Elle, to be her protector and defender, this wasn’t his battle to fight. But he’d already told Elle he’d be right next to her the entire time, supporting whatever choices she made—and making damn sure that Helena didn’t lay another finger on her.
He honestly had no idea what Elle intended to do or say today, but he’d ultimately back up whatever decision she made . . . as long as after this confrontation was over, one of those decisions included her being his. Forever. The thought of Elle walking away after his heart had finally started living for the future again—a future with her—would devastate him.
When they arrived at the house, he parked at the curb, and as they headed up the walkway with her carrying the file from Noah Reeves, he grabbed her free hand, giving it a warm, gentle squeeze to let her know she had this. She turned to look at him, and though her smile was a bit on the tense side, he also saw the determination in the depths of her eyes.
When they quietly entered the house, Hunter released her hand, letting Elle be her own woman so that the conviction and bravery within her would shine through all on its own. Hearing voices coming from the kitchen, they headed in that direction, finding Helena, Claire, and Gwen all sitting at the table having breakfast.
“I’m home,” Elle announced, and Helena stared at her with a combination of wariness and feigned concern that made Hunter’s palm itch to smack the latter off the woman’s face.
Gwen smirked at Elle, uncaring that she’d spent a few days in a hospital, and Claire, who’d pretty much saved Elle’s life, put down her fork and looked genuinely relieved that her stepsister had survived the harrowing ordeal Helena had put her through.
“I’m glad to see you’re okay,” Claire said, not giving anything away.
“Yes, we all are,” Helena added with forced sincerity, while her gaze remained cautious. “Claire told us after visiting you at the hospital that it was just a bad case of the flu.”
“Actually, it was a bad case of arsenic poisoning,” Elle said bluntly as she approached the side of the table where Helena sat, while Hunter remained a few feet behind, arms crossed over his chest. “Another few days of consuming the arsenic and I probably would have died.”
“Arsenic poisoning?” Helena set her coffee cup down and had the audacity to look startled at that statement. “How is that possible?”
Elle stared down her stepmother. “It’s possible because you’ve been putting it into my tea leaves and sugar.”
Helena’s hand fluttered nervously to her throat, though her expression turned indignant. “That is an outrageous accusation, Elaina. What makes you think I’d do such a thing?”
“Because you recently took out a fraudulent second loan on this house to withdraw the equity, and you knew eventually I was going to find out and getting rid of me was your best option.”
Gwen, who was sitting next to her mother, now wore a nervous expression on her face, which reflected Helena’s growing apprehension. As far as Hunter was concerned, the two of them looked guilty as fuck, while Claire had grown quiet as she watched and listened as her mother adamantly denied her involvement.
Helena sat up straighter in her chair, contempt and righteous anger radiating off her. “You have absolutely no proof to back up your preposterous claims.”
“I do,” Claire finally said as she met her mother’s narrowing gaze. “I saw you put something into Elle’s tea leaves and sugar and watched where you put the bottle of arsenic. And when you left the house, I took a picture of the poison so I’d have proof, just in case something happened to Elle.”
Fury flared in Gwen’s eyes as she glared at her sister, her jaw clenched tight. “Shut. Up.”
“No, I’m not going to shut up!” Claire shouted and stood up from her seat at the table, unleashing her own anger on Gwen and Helena. “You could have killed Elle and that’s not something I wanted on my conscience. You two treat her like she’s a pariah in this house when Elle has done nothing to deserve it, and I’m tired of watching her suffer.”
Then, surprisingly, Claire turned tear-filled eyes to Elle, her features apologetic and etched with genuine remorse. “I’m so sorry, Elle, for anything I’ve said or done to hurt you, and for me it stops here. And I need you to know, whatever these two are conspiring against you, I have no part of.”
“I know,” Elle said, clearly believing the other girl, while Hunter silently applauded Claire’s courage for supporting Elle and for standing up against her sister and her corrupt and vicious mother.
Claire ran out of the room, leaving Elle to face the other two women at the table, who were trying to smother their fear beneath disdainful, superior expressions that did nothing to deter Elle from her goal. She set the dossier on the table and slid it toward Helena, who didn’t dare touch it.
“This is an extensive and thorough investigative report on you, past and present,” she told her stepmother, her voice level and confident. “And inside, there are printouts of the loan documents that were fraudulently signed and notarized and are clearly not my signature.” Elle shifted her gaze to Gwen, who was trying to remain composed. “Considering that the bulk of the equity money is sitting in a personal savings account in your name, it’s clear that you were part of this reprehensible plan of Helena’s.”
Hunter expected Gwen to deny any involvement, but both women were starting to realize just how much eviden
ce Elle had against them and remained quiet.
Elle returned her attention to her stepmother, her gaze direct and unwavering. “So, here’s how it’s going to go, Helena, and know right up front that there is no room for negotiation, because my offer is far more generous than you deserve. Either you do exactly as I say or I will press charges against you for attempted murder and financial fraud. Same goes for you, Gwen, because I’m guessing that if a handwriting expert took a close look at my signature on the loan documents, they’d find that a lot of the variation of letters and characteristics are yours, not mine. You’ll both spend years in prison.”
Judging by the panic in Gwen’s wide eyes and Helena’s pursed lips, Elle had finally struck a nerve and they both knew they were screwed. There was too much evidence against them to balk.
“What do you want?” Helena asked, the haughtiness not so strong this time.
“To start with, I want everything signed over to me,” Elle said calmly. “This house. The realty company. And the four hundred thousand dollars in equity you stole from me.”
Helena swallowed hard, her initial anger ebbing into despair. “That . . . that will leave me with nothing.”
“I think it’s a fair trade for not going to jail for a very long time.” Elle shrugged, holding firm on her more than charitable deal. “I also want both of you out of this house and gone in one week.”
Helena gasped. “We can’t possibly move out in a week’s time! Where are we going to go?”
“That’s not my issue, it’s yours.”
Her stepmother abruptly rose, as if standing toe to toe with Elle would make her seem more intimidating. “You can’t do this,” she said, and there was no mistaking the desperation threading her voice or the fear in her eyes.
“I can, and I will,” Elle replied simply, not backing away from how close Helena had positioned her body. “You’ve pushed me around and manipulated me long enough, and you’ve taken far too much that belongs to me. I refuse to let you have anything more. I want you out of my life. For good. Accept all my terms and walk away with your freedom, or I’ll press charges and you go to jail. The choice is yours.”
