Page 25 of The Bitterroot Inn (Jamison Valley 5)
“No, maybe it will help. But will you go first? Tell me what your dream was about.”
She squeezed my hand and took a deep breath. “It was just like reliving it all over again. I was at the farmhouse and Everett showed up and took me. Then I woke up in the hospital basement and he brought you in. From there, everything went in slow motion. The fight. The scalpel. The blood.” She shuddered. “I can still hear the rattle of that pill bottle.”
“Me too,” I whispered as chills traveled down my spine. I hated that sound.
“What are your flashes about?”
“Mostly the same except they don’t always stay true to what really happened. Sometimes he gets me to take the pills. Sometimes he stabs me. No matter what, they are as real as if we were still in that basement. I can still smell it. Hear the sounds. Feel the chill in the air. They’re so real.”
Gigi’s hand squeezed mine tighter. “Oh, Maisy, I’m so sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry.” I shook my head. “He was my boyfriend. I should have noticed the signs and seen how evil he was, then none of that would have happened to us.”
“It is not your fault. None of us saw who he really was. He was a master at keeping his true self hidden.”
I’d told myself that same thing for years, but I’d always wonder if I could have done more had I not been so blinded by his handsome façade.
The day Everett Carlson had set foot in Prescott was the day my life had changed. He’d been a new doctor at the hospital, gorgeous and charming, and I’d been completely infatuated with him from the beginning. I had looked at him with stars in my eyes and not seen the deceit hidden beneath his perfect smile.
Lies. Everything he’d done, everything he’d pretended to be during our relationship, had all been lies.
In truth, he’d been a drug dealer, smuggling pills from the hospital and then selling them around town. He’d kidnapped Gigi because he’d thought she was onto his operation. He’d kidnapped me because I’d gotten pregnant and refused to have the abortion he had wanted. That night in the hospital basement, he’d planned on killing her and shoving enough pills down my throat to kill my baby.
To kill Coby.
Everett hadn’t gotten the chance. Gigi had fought back and created an opening for me to attack. To kill my child’s father.
I hadn’t stepped foot inside the hospital since that horrible night. There were too many memories there. Too many reminders of how naïve I’d been. Too many reminders that I had taken a life.
Too many reminders that I could have lost my son.
“I’m dreading the day Coby asks about his dad,” I whispered. It was my biggest fear. “What do I tell him?”
Gigi shook her head. “I don’t know, but whenever that time comes, I know you’ll tell him the right thing.”
“I hope you’re right.”
We sat together, holding hands, until a guest talking on his phone passed the room and broke the silence.
“Well, that got all kinds of serious.” Gigi laughed. “Change of subject?”
I took a deep breath and nodded. “Yes, please.”
“Are you excited for your date tomorrow?”
“Ugh,” I groaned, standing to resume making the bed. “I guess.”
“Felicity swears this guy is a catch. You never know, it could be fun.”
“You’re right. I shouldn’t be so cynical.” Once upon a time, I’d gotten excited for dates. I’d plan a special outfit. I’d put in effort to exfoliate, do my nails, spend extra time on my hair and makeup. But now, I just couldn’t find the motivation.
“You’re not cynical.” She fitted a pillow in its case. “You’ve just been burned by one really bad relationship and some crappy first dates. You’ve got good reason to be guarded, but Maisy, not every guy is a drug-dealing killer. You just have to keep an open mind and remember some guys need a second chance. I recall you telling me that once when I wrote Jess off as a jackass.”
I smiled. When Jess and Gigi had met, Jess had been a grade-A asshole, but I’d promised Gigi that he wasn’t a jerk and encouraged—begged—her to give him a shot. And in time, he’d won her over. “Okay. I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Do you want to borrow anything to wear? We could finish up here, go grab some lunch, then head out to the farmhouse and you could raid my closet.”
“I was actually thinking about just wearing a black blouse and some jeans.”
