~ Ava

I felt like my heart had been ripped out of my chest.

Despite growing up with a self-centered queen for a mother, and a sycophant for a sister, I knew relatively little heartache growing up. When my father died, I was so devastated that I cried for days—until Meredith burst in and told me to get on with my life, lest it pass me by.

Only the death of my father came anywhere close to what I felt like now. Food tasted like ash in my mouth, I barely wanted to get out of bed, and all I could do was cry. I went through moods where I was angry with myself for being an emotional wreck, and then, all at once, I was prey to those very same emotions and sobbed until I could barely breathe. I called out of work and didn’t follow up—not even when the company came after me, demanding to know what had happened with the issuance of termination from the Wolfe firm. Instead of answering the phone, I merely turned it off, stubbornly refusing to acknowledge the outside world.

How dare he. How dare he.

How dare I.

Jesus Christ, the man had admitted to me that he had feelings for me. Even if those feelings weren’t love, I should have respected them more.

But then he’d gone and spat on my feelings, crushing my heart and my livelihood in one breath. Without the steady check from Ares’ contract, I’d soon be back to barely making ends meet. The very prospect made me moan in anxiety, and I did my best to shut it out. I didn’t want to think about it. I didn’t want to think about Ares and I certainly didn’t want to think about him crushing Hamilton’s face to a pulp like an avenging angel.

Dear God, what the hell was wrong with me? It was impossible that I was so wrapped up in a single man that his loss could completely devastate me. Maybe my family was right—I was too kind. Too good. Too trusting. Did that just mean I was destined for a life of heartbreak? The notion was too depressing to contemplate, even in my current state.

On my fourth day of seclusion, a knock came on my door. It was gentle at first, and I had every intention of ignoring it. Then, slowly, the racket grew in volume until I was throwing the covers off and rushing to the door, intent on giving the intruder an earful. When I yanked the door open, however, Sandy stood on my doorstep, a pint of ice cream in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other. She took one look at me and her face fell. “Oh, honey. Come here. Come here.”

I didn’t even question her. With a soft sob, I collapsed into Sandy’s welcoming arms, crying out my grief to the only person who had ever really understood me. She held me, uncaring of the neighbors that passed by, eying us like we were crazy. For at least twenty minutes, Sandy rocked me quietly, letting me sob against her until I finally regained the wherewithal to speak.

When my sobs had finally quieted, she rubbed my back gently. “Come on, babe. Let’s get inside and get you warmed up.”

Within a few minutes, she had me settled on the couch with a blanket around me, pulling me close as she coaxed me into telling her everything.

And I did. Every little detail, from being forced to go to the gala. Tearfully, I recounted Hamilton’s cruelty right outside my door and how Ares had come selflessly to my rescue—and how I’d betrayed his trust.

Sandy listened to the entire story silently, absorbing every word I said. By the time I finished, my voice was hoarse from speaking and I was emotionally and physically exhausted. I thought she might give me advice—might rail against Ares and try to convince me that I didn’t need him anyway. Instead, Sandy merely stroked my hair and told me the one thing I needed to hear.

“It’s ok, Ava. Everything is going to be all right. I promise.” It set off another fresh wave of tears, and Sandy took them like a champ. I loved her, and no matter what happened, she was always there for me.

I had never been so grateful.

That afternoon gave me some semblance of peace. I hadn’t had a decent meal in days and Sandy made me order a pizza and watched me eat two slices. She put on one of our favorite movies and pressed a wine glass into my hand and, for the first time since Ares and I had parted ways, I wasn’t completely miserable.

Around eight in the evening, she announced that her husband was babysitting and she was spending the night. I didn’t tell her how relieved I was. I wasn’t looking forward to her leaving me alone with my thoughts after the first tearless hours I’d had in days. We were just breaking the pizza back out for dinner when another knock sounded through this apartment. This one skipped gentility and went straight for demand—loud and boisterous.

Grimacing, I made to answer it, only to have Sandy push me gently back down on the sofa before going herself.

Within moments, the door banged open and both Meredith and Lilah paraded into my small living room, both their expressions incensed. “Ava, I demand an explanation!” My mother bellowed, her color high. “What’s this news story about? I see that the police were at your apartment the other night and your so-called client was arrested for brawling? Poor Hamilton’s in the hospital, Ava. What on earth am I supposed to tell his parents?”

“I can’t believe you let that brute lay a hand on Hamilton.” Lilah was shaking her head in disbelief. “He’ll be out of surgery for weeks.”

“Oh, my God.” Sandy had made it back to the living room at this point, and she was staring from one woman to the other in disbelief. “I’ve heard a lot, but you guys are even more unbelievable in the flesh.” She gestured to me, her scowl angry. “Your daughter is in distress. She hasn’t been to work in days and you bust in here making demands? Fucking priceless.”

“Who are you, exactly?” Lilah sniped, her eyes narrowing—but before she could start in on Sandy, I found myself standing, ready to shatter their perfect perception of Hamilton Carmichael.

“Hamilton forced himself on me,” I revealed, my resolve stronger than it had been in days. “He drove me home after the gala and when I wouldn’t let him kiss me, he assaulted me. Ares arrived when he was on top of me and saved me from getting raped in the hallway.”

Meredith’s mouth dropped open in disbelief as Lilah began shaking her head slowly.

“Of course, he beat Hamilton to a pulp—and the police did their job. That’s all.” Seeing the shock on their faces imparted me with no small amount of satisfaction. Now, certainly, they would see it. Their precious little circle of wealth and prestige was far from what it seemed—they had to realize the truth.

But when my mother finally spoke, her words floored me. “There must be some mistake.” She straightened, patting her hair into place as her color normalized. “Hamilton is a such a sweet boy, he couldn’t possibly have done such a thing. Ava, I told you that man, Ares could only be a bad influence on you. He’s obviously warped your perception of what a proper man behaves like.”

Oh. My. God. A thousand thoughts and emotions swirled through my head, but before I could voice a single word, Sandy beat me to the punch.

“You bitch.” She was gazing at my mother with pure, liquid hate in her eyes. “I can’t believe the words coming out of your mouth.”

“Excuse me?” Lilah was immediately galled for Meredith but, by that point, I had found my words. This bullshit had gone on for long enough and I wasn’t about to take it anymore.

“How dare you.” My words came out soft, but perfectly audible. “How the hell can you be related to me? I’m telling you that a man tried to rape me. He hit me and the physical proof is right here.” I touched the still livid bruise on my cheek. “What is wrong with you? What part of you is wired so wrong that you can’t admit that something you set up turned sour? I’m your daughter.” I turned to Lilah, my every word growing in volume. “Your sister! If you loved me even the tiniest bit, you’d care more about my well-being than landing a fucking high-class husband. You’d listen to me and you wouldn’t treat me like I’m less than nothing just because I’m not like you. You have never, not once, listened to what I wanted. As far as I’m concerned, when Dad died, so did my connection with this family.”

“Ava...” Something very much like regret was beginning to show on my mother’s face, but it was too little too late.

“No, Meredith. I’m done. With this whole charade, with you, and with Lilah. I need you to leave—right now. And if you ever expect to have any kind of relationship with me at all, both of you need to seriously re-evaluate the way you live your lives. As things stand right now, there’s no space in mine for people as toxic as you are.”

For almost a full minute, it was silent enough to hear a pin drop. Lilah looked to be on the edge of tears, but considering how many times she’d driven me to the same state, I had no sympathy for her. Finally, Meredith nodded a single gesture of acceptance.

Taking Lilah’s arm, she tugged my sister down the short hallway and out the front door. When it closed, I collapsed onto the couch, shaking all over.

“Oh, my God, Ava.” Sandy immediately enveloped me in a tight embrace. “That was brilliant. Absolutely brilliant.”

I was shocked to find tears streaming down my cheeks anew, but this time, there was no sorrow behind them, only a profound sense of relief.

I was free.

And even if I’d lost Ares, it was a step in the right direction.