Chapter 5

My phone rang before I could even catch my breath. I answered it and heard Jake's voice on the other end.

“Faye. You cut us off for Colter. You chose him over Mom and Dad, and now you're calling me after they're dead?”

I swallowed hard. “I know.”

“You don't get to say you know. You made your choice years ago.”

My eyes filled with tears as I wiped my face. “I did, and I regret it every day.”

There was silence for a moment before I forced myself to continue. “Colter forced me to end my pregnancy because Helena's pregnant. He made me give the stem cells to Helena, and now he thinks I shot her. He's already signed the divorce papers, but he still won't let me leave.”

Jake aswer.

“I don't want revenge anymore,” I whispered. “I just want to disappear. I want him to think I'm dead so he can't control me anymore.”

His voice became quieter. “Where are you?”

“At the Vancourt villa.”

“When can you get out?”

“I don't know.”

“You don't need to know. I'll handle it.”

I closed my eyes, trying to hold back my tears. “I know you're angry with me, Jake. I chose Colter over our family, and I can't change that. But I'm scared he'll hurt me if I stay.”

“I know.”

His voice was still cold, but there was something underneath it that I hadn't heard from him in years.

“Tomorrow morning, you're leaving.”

“How?”

“You don't need to worry about that. Just be ready.”

I started crying again. “Thank you.”

“Don't thank me yet.”

He paused before adding, “This isn't about forgiving you, Faye. It's about making sure Colter never gets another chance to hurt you.”

The call ended, and I sat there staring at my phone. For the first time in years, I had a way out. I looked around the room, thinking about everything I had lost and wondering if I could really leave it all behind.

Then I remembered my baby.

Yes.

I would.

The next morning, a black sedan was waiting outside the villa. It was nothing fancy and didn't attract any attention, which was exactly what we needed. I quietly left the house and got into the backseat before anyone could notice.

The driver looked at me through the rearview mirror. “Ms. Winslow?”

“Yes.”

“Your brother handled everything. Once we leave the area, nobody will be able to track your phone.”

I nodded and kept my eyes forward. I didn't even look back at the villa as the car drove toward the mountains. My knees still hurt from the broken glass, but I ignored the pain. After everything I'd been through, pain didn't scare me anymore.

About an hour later, the driver spoke again. “We prepared everything. Another woman will be found in the car after the explosion. She has the same height and a similar build.”

I looked at him. “My clothes?”

“Already placed inside. Your bag, perfume, watch, and identification will all be there.”

“So Colter will think it's me.”

“Yes.”

I looked out the window. “Jake really thought of everything.”

“He said you didn't need comfort. You needed a clean way out.”

I looked down at my hands. That sounded like my brother. He might have been angry with me, but when I finally needed him, he had still come to save me.

The road became narrower as we climbed higher, and eventually we reached the meeting point where another car was waiting. I stepped out of the sedan, and the driver opened the door of the second car.

“Once you leave this place, you're Faye Vancourth no longer.”

I nodded. “I understand.”

He studied my face for a moment. “Are you sure?”

I took one last breath and looked back at the road behind me. “Yes.”

I got into the second car, and the first sedan drove away. I watched it disappear between the trees until it was completely out of sight.

Then I heard the explosion.

The sound shook the mountain, and fire rose behind the trees as thick smoke filled the sky. My old identity was inside that car. My clothes, my bag, my watch, my identification, and everything else Colter would recognize were all there.

Everyone would believe Faye Vancourth was dead.

I sat quietly in the backseat. I didn't cry, but I didn't feel happy either. I just felt tired.

For years, I had begged Colter to love me. I begged him to protect me, and I begged him to let me keep my baby. Now I wasn't begging anymore.

He wanted me gone from his life, so I was giving him exactly what he wanted.

Except this time, he would never know where I went.

And he couldn't follow me.

....

[COLTER'S POV]

Meanwhile, my phone rang just as I was stirring honey into Helena's tea.

I didn't bother checking the caller.

“What?”

The voice on the other end sounded shaken.

“Don... it's Ms. Faye. She…”

There was a pause, followed by a sharp breath.

“There was a crash on the eastern mountain road. The car exploded on impact. The body was recovered. Her identification matches, and so does her watch.”

My hand stopped moving.

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“It's already on the national news, Don! Witnesses recorded the fire, and they've confirmed it's the Donna!”