Over the next few days, Ella had plenty of time to ponder what her new life on the beach in California would be like. Staring out the window while Rome drove, or letting her mind wander while she was behind the wheel and he dozed in the passenger seat, there were lots of opportunities for her to daydream about all of the possible outcomes if she tried to stay hidden away in the house, versus letting her parents know she was alive.
In the end, she couldn’t imagine how guilty her father would make her feel when he found out the truth, that she’d faked her own death. She didn’t think she could live with herself after hearing him berate her about all of her transgressions, even if she had felt as if he deserved it at the time and still felt that way right now. So… even though she wasn’t thril
