Faking His Death Chapter 04

Faking His Death Chapter 04

Instinctively, I clenched the ticket in my fist and shielded Nora behind me.

“Where I’m going is none of your business,” I said. “You don’t get a say, Owen Callahan.”

I deliberately stressed his name.

Ethan’s face stiffened for a split second, then he smoothed it over. “Brooke’s pregnant. She needs someone taking care of her, so you’ll do what you’ve always done—keep the house running, and you’ll still have food to eat.”

I stared at him, ice-cold. “Ethan is dead, remember? I’m an outsider, and I’m not staying in your house.”

“My daughter and I don’t matter to you anyway,” I added. “Brooke’s your wife, so you can take care of her yourself.”

I turned to leave with Nora.

Ethan strode over and snatched the ticket out of my hand before I could react.

He tore it into pieces and said, like it was final, “I’m doing this for your own good. You’re a widow with a child—how are you supposed to survive out there? Stay here and at least you won’t starve.”

Paper scraps fluttered to the ground, and I shook with rage.

I shoved him hard. “So you know I’m your sister-in-law. Then back off and stay away from me.”

He didn’t step back. He stepped in, still wearing that superior look, impatience sharpening his features.

“Don’t make me do this the hard way,” he snapped. “I’m letting you stay. What more do you want?”

I almost laughed.

Last time, I begged him to save our child, and he stood by while his mother threw us out.

Now I was leaving on my own, and suddenly they couldn’t let me go.

“You’re my husband’s brother,” I said through clenched teeth. “You’re not my husband, and I can leave whenever I want. Who are you to stop me?”

His brow furrowed, and his voice shifted into a false kind of compromise. “Lena, you’re really that heartless. My brother dies and you can’t wait to run.”

“Fine,” he said, eyes dark. “I’ll ‘take care of both households.’ You can stay under my roof, and I’ll be your man too.”

“You’re just desperate for a man, aren’t you?” he went on, breath hot with entitlement. “I’ll give you a place and a name, and Brooke’s baby will count as yours too.”

Before he could finish, I put everything I had into my arm and slapped him across the face.

His head snapped to the side, and his expression turned instantly vicious.

“You’ve lost your mind,” he hissed.

“Today, you’re not going anywhere.”

He grabbed my wrist and shoved me toward the house, and I fought him with every ounce of strength I had.

In the middle of the struggle, a burst of noise erupted outside and the door was shoved open.

Ethan froze when he saw who was standing there.