Where Love Could Not Follow

Chapter 3

One wall away, I was imprisoned in that tiny room.

My mouth was gagged and my hands and feet were bound. All I could do was watch that sordid, nauseating farce.

At that moment, I finally saw every ugly layer of Gavin's hypocrisy.

He had sworn I was his one true love and that he would never betray me.

Yet from the moment I was kidn*pped, he had countless chances to call the police and save me lawfully.

If he had called, Brielle would have been arrested again immediately. She never would have had the chance to manipulate or threaten him.

But he didn't.

This was nothing more than a game the two of them had silently agreed to play.

After an endless ordeal, the sounds next door finally stopped.

Gavin rose and dressed with perfect composure. Once his clothes were straight, he looked back at Brielle on the bed. "You've had your fun. Let Elise go."

Triumph glinted in Brielle's eyes as she nodded meekly. "All right."

She quickly put herself in order, then opened the door to the room with the one-way glass.

She came over and unhurriedly untied me before pulling the gag from my mouth.

The instant I was free, my limbs were so numb and stiff that I could barely stand.

Inside, however, there was only dead silence. Even my anger had grown faint.

She led me into the spacious living room.

As soon as Gavin saw me, he hurried over. Fear and anxiety flooded his face as he pulled me tightly into his arms.

"Ellie, are you all right? Are you hurt anywhere? I'm sorry. I came too late and put you through all this. I swear I won't let Brielle get away with it. I'll make her pay dearly. She'll lose everything!"

His warm embrace, his passionate vows, his familiar tenderness—everything that once would have moved me now made me physically sick.

I gently pushed him away and gave a cold laugh. "Isn't she supposed to be in prison? Brielle is an ordinary working woman with no money or power. How did she get out? How can she afford a luxury villa like this, much less all these bodyguards?

"Mr. Mercer, after everything that's happened, don't you think you owe me an explanation?"

The barrage of questions froze the panic on Gavin's face.

He couldn't answer a single word.

After several seconds of silence, he simply avoided my questions, bent down, and swept me into his arms. "Ellie, we're going home. We'll talk there. Don't make a scene here."

I didn't struggle. I let him carry me out of the villa and put me in the car.

On the drive back, I leaned against the window without saying a word.

Gavin kept glancing over as he drove, soothing me with an endless stream of gentle promises. "Ellie, I know you've been hurt. This is my fault. I didn't handle things with her properly, and you paid the price.

"Believe me, you're the only one in my heart. When this is over, I'll make it up to you. We'll travel around the world, and I'll give you anything you want. I'll deal with Brielle once and for all. She'll never appear in front of us again."

His breathtakingly false assurances were almost funny.

Just then, Gavin's phone rang.

The name Brielle flashed across the screen.

The man who had been so tender and remorseful only moments earlier went rigid.

He answered at once. Brielle's anguished sobs came through the phone, mingled with the roar of the wind. "Gavin, I'm standing on the guardrail of the overpass. I'm going to jump! I had you once, and that's enough for a lifetime. I can die without regrets!"

The next second, Gavin slammed on the brakes. The car stopped abruptly on an overpass streaming with traffic.

He turned to me, his expression cold and his voice taut with impatience and urgency. "Get out. I have to go find her."

I stared blankly at him as the last trace of warmth in my heart died. I was too numb even to hurt.

Cars hurtled past us. He didn't care that leaving me alone on the overpass could get me killed.

I stayed silent and didn't move.

When I failed to obey, his impatience sharpened into an accusation. "Elise, can't you be reasonable for once? She's about to kill herself. Her life is at stake!"

Without waiting for my answer, he jumped out, yanked me from the car, and left me beside the surging traffic.

"Stay here and don't wander off. I'll come back for you."

After tossing me that empty promise, he sped away.