He spoke, and they listened.
He spoke, and they did what they were told.
“Yeah, I know what you mean.” Megan handed the file back to the chief. She took a deep breath. “Thank you.”
“It was really the least I could do. I wish it was more.”
After all those years, he had finally given her what he felt he owed to her. His debt was paid. Now it was Megan’s turn to repay hers.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
“Well Billy, it looks like the kid outsmarted you this time.”
“Can’t win them all.”
Megan sat in her room with the door locked, fast-forwarding through the tape Evan had given her the night he snuck in through her window. She had never cared to watch it before, had never cared for the full story, but if everything Chief Davis told her was true, she needed to see it with her own eyes.
“That girl was so hot.”
“What girl?” She could see the confusion on Evan’s face, even on the blurry black and white recording.
“The girl Uncle Billy fucked during the party.”
Megan didn’t care to listen to Darren’s drunken ramblings; she fast-forwarded more. When she saw Darren and his father leave and Evan push back from the table, she pressed play.
“Evan, calm down.”
“You…you…”
“Yes, I…I. Spit it out already.”
“How could you?” Evan stumbled back.
“How couldn’t you? That’s a better question. I have to tell you. It came as quite a shock when I realized I had been the first.”
She sped through the tape a little further.
“Let me tell you…you missed out.”
Then they began to fight. Megan was fixated on the screen, waiting for the inevitable.
“Don’t move, Evan.”
“You’re not going to shoot me.”
“That all depends. What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to get Megan back in school.”
Even with a gun pointed straight at him, Evan was threatening his uncle just to get her enrolled back in school. He was fighting for her.
He had always fought for her. Why hadn’t he ever told her?
“You don’t dare talk to me like that, kid.” Megan saw Dr. Covington cock the gun. She knew that sound and she knew exactly what speech was about to come. But this time, she knew who was on the receiving end of his speech. It was Evan. Her Evan. She was about to listen to Dr. Covington’s rant for the last time. “I am the man here. Not you. I stuck my cock in her mouth, and I gagged her. I fucked that girl until she was blue. And the naïve, scared, little puppy dog look on her face while I took her was absolutely priceless. So, she got kicked out of school. So, she’s destined for mediocrity. What the hell do I care? It was worth it to be the man to take away her virtue. It was all worth it just to be the man who put her in her place. And, believe you me; that little Megan Coulis is better for it.”
There was the familiar tussle, the familiar sounds of a struggle, and then the gunshot. It was all the same.
But this time, Megan watched Evan fall to his knees. She watched Dr. Covington die. She watched Evan change forever when he realized what he had done.
“Mom, I’ll be back later!” Megan called as she stormed out of the house.
“Later as in tonight?”
Her mother called after her, but Megan was already gone.
“Evan Covington, where the Hell are you?”
Evan was in the kitchen, whipping up some macaroni and cheese, when he heard her voice ring through his house.
He turned the oven off and swung around to leave the kitchen, but she was already in the doorway.
“Megan. You’re…here.” He stuttered, as he was not expecting to see her.
“I am.”
“And you’re angry?” He questioned, unable to read her face.
“Yes. I’m very angry.”
He shrugged his shoulders. “Do you want macaroni and cheese?”
“No I do not want macaroni and cheese!”
Evan wasn’t quite sure what to expect. He had kept his distance. He was getting better. He was learning to control his impulses. Why was she angry?
“Meg, what happened?”
She took a step toward him. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Evan was even more confused than he had been a second earlier. When he had left her home that night over three months earlier, he was under the distinct impression that she knew what he had done. She had to know.
“I thought I did. I thought you knew.”
“No, Evan, that’s not what I’m talking about. Why didn’t you tell me that you fought for me?”
As Megan’s pale face began to redden, Evan heard what she was truly asking him. “And what would I have said, Meg?”
Her eyes squeezed together as she fought off the tears. “That you were there. That you wouldn’t give up. I don’t know, something. I thought I was alone. The whole time.” She repeated herself through her sobs. “I thought I was alone.”
Evan ran to her and picked her up in his arms. He pulled her to his chest and rocked her from side to side as he whispered into her ear. “Listen to me. Now, you listen to me. You were never alone. You are never alone. And you will never be alone. Do you understand that?”
Megan looked up at him with her tear soaked, bright blue eyes. “I am so sorry I wasn’t there for you.”
Evan threw out every inhibition he was holding onto and kissed her. It was soft and slow and it was the only way he could tell her how much he truly missed her. He needed her, and he was nothing without her. Still holding her in his arms, he slowly made his way out of the kitchen, down the short hallway, up the stairs and into his bedroom. He softly laid her down on the mattress and leaned over her, planting one more kiss on her lips.
Evan deliberately peeled off his clothes, never taking his eyes off of her. And Megan, alike, never took her eyes off of him. He slid her shirt up and over her head, letting his hands feel her entire body. He wrapped his fingers in hers as he positioned himself over her and began to kiss her neck ever so gently.
Her tender moans made his lips curl into a smile. He had missed her smell, her warmth, her touch…being with her was all he could ask for; and it was all he craved.
When they were both ready and wanting, he slowly pushed inside of her, and they moved as one. They refused to let go of each other’s hands as their love making intensified. They kept their movements soft and slow, begging to make it last as long as possible. Evan lifted her on top of him and held onto her hips. As she moved up and down, he pushed deeper and deeper. He watched her bright blue eyes sparkle the entire time.
Their breathing quickened and their moans heightened. Evan squeezed her hips, just hoping to get even the tiniest bit closer.
“I love you, Megan.” He whispered.
“I love you too, Evan.” She whispered right back.
She felt him release inside of her, filling her to completion. She softly collapsed on top of his chest, and they lay there silent, simply listening to each other’s breath. It was nothing like their games, nothing as exciting, nothing as intense, but it was perfect. It was everything.
Evan ran his fingers through her hair. “When do you leave?”
Megan opened her eyes when she heard his question. “Tomorrow morning. How did you know?”
He quietly chuckled. “Of course I knew, Megan. I can’t stop knowing you.”
She wrapped her arms around him and clutched him close as she felt tears begin to sting her eyes. “Come with me.” She whispered.
Evan kept strumming his fingers through her hair as he thought about her request. He couldn’t, he wanted to, but he couldn’t. He wasn’t ready. He wasn’t yet the man she needed him to be, and he couldn’t risk being a disappointment. He couldn’t risk subjecting her to the monster.
He lightly kissed her forehead. “I can’t, Meg.”
She slowly nodded as she felt her emotions begi
n to crumble. “I know…I know.”
They didn’t discuss it further. They didn’t dwell on the inevitable. They simply decided to hold each other. They lay there, just like that, for forever.
“Now do you want macaroni and cheese?” Evan whispered.
“I do.” Megan lifted her head to smile at Evan. “I really do.”
EPILOGUE
…One Year Later
“Hey Genius Freak.”
Megan looked up from her beaker full of pond water. She was knee deep in water and plant life and scum, her hair was pulled back in some sorry excuse for a bun, she was wearing a pair of oversized goggles across her forehead, and she was pretty sure something was crawling across her face. But none of that mattered.
Standing in front of her, on the drought-dried marshland, was Evan Covington; beautiful, dark, alluring Evan Covington. His hands were nestled in his pockets and he bit his large lower lip before giving his cavalier signature smile.
“What…” She tried to catch her breath. “What are you doing here?”
He looked around at the cattails and tall grass. “Would you believe me if I said I just happened to be taking a stroll in the marshland?”
She giggled, remembering their same back and forth the day he was running beside her in the wooded area behind the police station.
“Maybe…if you weren’t wearing a suit.” A smile broke out over her face. She was not at all upset that he had chosen to don that particular suit. It was dark gray, almost black, with thick, stitched white pin stripes. His shirt was bright white, and he had unbuttoned the top two buttons. He looked absolutely dashing.
“The suits always give me away. Maybe I should stop wearing them.”
“No!” Megan almost dropped her beaker of pond water. “No, don’t stop wearing them. Keep wearing the suits.” She felt her cheeks blush. He still had quite an effect on her.
Megan called to her lab partner that she had a visitor and was going to take a little walk. Her lab partner did a quick double take when she saw Evan and then gave Megan an overly exuberant thumbs up.
“Thanks!” She laughed as she climbed out of the pond.
“Here, let me help you.” Evan reached his hand out to her, but Megan refused.
“I have so many microorganisms crawling on me right now. You don’t want any of this, believe me.”
They exchanged an awkward silence at her remark, but quickly brushed over it.
“Look at you. How do you like college, Meg?”
Megan glanced around at her fellow classmates. “I get to play in the dirt all day. College is like being a big kid.” She set her beaker down on a small cooler and pulled off her large rubber gloves. “Plus, everyone here is as smart as me, so no one calls me genius freak.”
“They’re not as smart as you.” Evan shook his head.
She couldn’t argue with him. “Okay, not as smart, but close.”
“I’ll take close.”
They strolled farther from the group, neither having a destination in mind, but neither wanting to stop to figure one out.
“How’s your brother?”
“Darren? He’s great. The baby is good, he eats a ton…”
“Darren or the baby?” She jokingly interrupted.
“Ha! I meant the baby, but come to think of it, I’d say Darren has put on a few pounds too.”
Megan couldn’t wipe the smile off of her face. It felt good, even right to be around Evan again. They just seemed to fit. She had forgotten what that felt like. Everything in her life was going according to plan. Up until that moment, she thought she had it all, but walking beside Evan in the California swamp, while the sun began to set…she finally realized what ‘having it all’ actually meant. She didn’t need closure, and she didn’t need revenge. She found the one thing that was missing.
“How’s your mom?”
“My mom?” Megan snapped back to him. “She’s good. She lives about an hour south of here. On the beach.”
“That’s nice.”
“It is. Plus, it’s an hour away, which is perfect, both for when I want to see her, and for when I don’t.” She chuckled.
“Hey, listen.” Evan jumped in, not necessarily wanting to change the subject, but he knew he had to. “I want you to know I’m okay.” Evan shoved his hands back in his pockets as he kicked the brush in front of him. “When we last saw each other, I wasn’t. And I know I blamed a lot of that on you. Well, not when we last saw each other…” He winked. “But the time before that. Overall, I wasn’t okay, and it wasn’t your fault.”
“A lot of that was my fault.”
“I’ve come to realize that it would have come out eventually. You just…helped me find that side of me a little earlier than I might have found it myself.”
Megan began to kick the brush as well. “I am sorry about that.”
“No, Meg…I’m not looking for an apology. I just thought you should know, that while I might always be a work in progress, I’m getting there…and in a healthy way.”
Megan felt a sense of pride fill her. “I really am happy for you, Evan.”
“It’s super apparent that I took that line right from my therapist, isn’t it?” He turned to her as he scrunched his lips together.
“Oh, for sure.” She laughed. She figured as much, but didn’t want to push him to tell her about something he might not be ready to share. “So, your therapist suggested you fly three thousand miles to deliver that new mantra to me?”
“Oh, let’s be clear. My therapist gave me the mantra, but told me to steer clear of you.”
“Hey!” She quickly yelled in joking shock.
“Don’t get mad at me. Get mad at my therapist.”
“What are you saying about me in your sessions?”
Evan threw his hands in the air. “Only the God’s honest truth.”
Megan searched her memories of him, and then shrugged her shoulders. “Yeah, okay. I can see why you were told to steer clear of me.” She took a step closer to him as they continued their stride. “But, just to set the record straight…I’m getting better too.”
Evan nodded, really seeing her. “I can tell.”
That alone was all the compliment she needed. “Thank you.”
“Of course. Did you find yourself a therapist as well?”
“Oh, absolutely. Twice a week. Paid for by the state of Vermont.”
“Wow, you really took them for everything you could.”
“Really? Really?” She cocked her head at him.
“Kidding. Totally kidding. You deserve so much more.”
Her cheeks lifted, thinking of the first night he made her dinner. “Much more than hamburgers?”
Evan kicked the ground with a small laugh. “So much more than hamburgers.”
Megan pursed her lips and wriggled her nose. “You still haven’t told me why you are here, in my marsh, Mr. Covington.”
Evan took a deep breath before letting it all out in a single sigh. “I’m getting married.”
Megan felt her throat close up and her heart stop in her chest. It was the farthest thing from what she expected him to say. She fought her emotions, tried to keep them in check and force herself to smile and tell him that she was so happy for him. But she couldn’t bring herself to do that.
She could only say “Oh.”
Evan stopped moving and rapidly shook his head. He spit out every single word that popped into his mind. “I don’t know why I said that. At first I thought it would be a joke, and then I thought it would be a good way to gage your reaction to see how you actually felt about me moving on, but the truth is that I am still madly in love with you, Megan. You’re all I think about, and I don’t want to have a life without you. I can…I can if that’s what you want, but it’s not what I want. I want to live a life that I want, and I want nothing more than to be with you.”
Megan didn’t speak; she just stared at him with her mouth slightly open and her eyes squinting in the setting sun.
&nb
sp; “Megan, please say something.”
“So, you’re not getting married?”
He shook his head. “I’m not. Not even close. Not even dating anyone. No dates.”
Megan burst out into a fit of laughter, buckling over herself.
“Wait, why are you laughing?” He stepped closer to her.
Megan continued to giggle as she explained herself. “You traveled some three thousand miles, found me knee deep in a swamp, all to tell me you love me. Your plan to do so, was to trick me by saying you were getting married and then gage my reaction?”
“Okay, it sounds silly when you say it.” Evan’s eyebrows rose as he tried to defend himself.
“It’s very silly any way you say it.” She bit her lip to stop from laughing. “I’m sorry, but come on, think how you would react if I did that to you.”
“You would never do that to me.”
“Oh, I know…because I don’t do silly things.” She teased.
“Hey, I traveled three thousand miles for this.”
She turned to face him, stopping their stroll. “And what did you learn, dear Evan?”
“Well, I have no idea. Your ‘oh’, then your silence, and now your incessant laughter isn’t helping me gage you at all.”
Unimaginable Page 17