Keeping Secrets (An Anonymous Novella)

Chapter 17 Part 2

Chapter 17 Part 2

This wasn't the Lyle she knew. The Lyle she knew was reserved and awkward, but also friendly. This Lyle, with his tight features and focused stare, brought a whole other person with him.

He held the flashlight up to them, directing the beam her way. "Chloe." He smiled softly at her. "You're still here. I was afraid they'd take you from me again."

Ethan clenched his fists and took a step over Raul, the blue lightning dancing along his knuckles.

"Ah ah, I wouldn't." Lyle pointed the gun--a sleek, black weapon--at his forehead.

Holding her hands out, Chloe made herself step over Raul, the shattered glass on the floor digging into her socked feet. Tiny pieces of it coated her exposed skin, pricking at her with every movement. "Lyle, let's just take a second to relax. We're friends, aren't we?"

'Friends' must've been the wrong word. Anger passed over Lyle's face and he gripped the weapon tighter. "We are more than friends. As soon as he gets out of the way."

Distract him. "Lyle, where did you learn how to shoot?" She asked quietly.

"I took lessons." He said, looking way too eager for her liking, "I knew you'd need someone to keep you safe."

"You always need to be kept safe." He went on. "That's why I let you have your guards. But then they wouldn't let me see you."

"They were there to protect her from you." Ethan said.

The light from Ethan's fists was more than enough to give the room a blue glow that highlighted Lyle's injuries. His bottom lip had been split and leaked blood down his chin. On his cheek was a large gash that dripped, the area around it already turning a different color. He leaned slightly to his left, favoring that side, and it made her wonder if the dark spot on his right leg was more than he let on.

At Ethan's words, Lyle's eyebrows came together and his nostrils flared. He put a finger next to the trigger.

He was an absolute psycho way beyond reach. "Okay, okay, wait. Lyle, you wouldn't want to hurt Ethan."

"He stole you from me."

Ethan needed to get out of here. The longer he was near Lyle, the closer Lyle would get to thinking Ethan needed to be eliminated. If he thinks he's losing you, he can and will become very dangerous, Jackson had said. His protection was paramount to both his country and to her. If she could just get Ethan to safety, he could get help. If she could get him away from Lyle, then whatever happened afterward would not be half as bad as if Lyle decided to use force against her mate. That left her with the option of stalling or...

....playing into his fantasy.

She set a gentle hand on Ethan's lower back, a comforting gesture, though more for her. Then, she took a deep breath and stepped forward.

"Elizabeth, no." Ethan tried to grab her by the arm, but she pulled it out of reach.

Her hands came out in a calming gesture once more. "Lyle, I'm so glad you finally came." The words tasted sour, but she swallowed past it and put on her best smile. "I've been wondering when you'd get here."

Lyle's eyes darted to Ethan and back to her. His grip on the gun relaxed slightly. All she could focus on was how close it was. "I knew you'd be waiting for me. I had to get here. I...I dyed my hair for you."

He had. It was now a dark color that curled at his temples instead of the easy blond he used to have.

It matched Ethan's color exactly.