Bound By Lies - Rafe Cameron

Chapter 45

My phone vibrates for the hundredth time today, the screen lighting up with Rafe's name. I stare at it, my hands trembling, my chest tightening with a mix of anger, sadness, and exhaustion. Part of me wants to throw the phone against the wall, to break it just to get a moment of peace. But I can't seem to bring myself to do it.

With a deep breath, I swipe to answer, bringing the phone to my ear.

"What do you want, Rafe?" My voice comes out flat, lifeless, like I'm drained of all the emotion I've been carrying for days.

There's a moment of silence on the other end, and I almost think he's hung up. Then, I hear a shuddering breath, his voice breaking when he speaks.

"Teresa... baby." He sounds wrecked, like he hasn't slept at all. "I need to see you. I need to explain."

I let out a bitter laugh, the sound foreign to my own ears. "Explain what, Rafe? That you used me to cover up your crime? There's nothing left to say."

"No, no, that's not true!" Rafe pleads, his voice frantic. "It was never like that! You have to believe me, Teresa. I never wanted to hurt you. I just—" He cuts off, taking a shaky breath. "Just tell me what to do, and I'll do it. Whatever you want... just tell me."

"What I want, Rafe?" I ask quietly, my voice trembling. "I want to go back to before. Before I knew what kind of monster you really are. I want to be able to look at you and not see the man who murdered my aunt in cold blood."

His breath catches on a sob, and I hear him struggling to hold it together. "I'm not a monster, Teresa... I swear I'm not. I didn't mean for it to happen. It was an accident—"

"Don't you dare say it was an accident!" I scream, my voice echoing in the small room I'm sitting in. "You pointed a gun at her and you pulled the trigger! You didn't accidentally shoot her, Rafe. You killed her. You killed her and then you lied to me about it for months! You manipulated me, you—"

"I know!" he chokes out, cutting me off, his voice thick with tears. "I know what I did! And I know I don't deserve your forgiveness. But please, baby, I'm begging you... don't shut me out. I'll spend the rest of my life making it up to you. Just... just give me a chance. One more chance."

"I can't, Rafe," I whisper, my voice breaking. "I can't give you another chance. I can't even look at you without feeling sick. Everything between us was built on lies and blood. I don't even know who you are anymore."

"Teresa, please..." he breathes, his voice so full of pain it almost undoes me. "I'll do anything. I'll—"

"I'm hanging up," I say, my voice wavering. "And don't call me again, Rafe. I need space. I need time to figure out how to even breathe again after everything you've done. So just... don't."

"No, wait—" he starts, but I press the 'end call' button, cutting him off mid-sentence. I stare at the screen for a long moment, my heart pounding, my hands shaking.

And then, with a shuddering breath, I throw the phone down onto the bed and collapse beside it, sobs wracking my body as I cry for everything I've lost. 

RAFE'S POV

I stare at the phone in my hand, disbelief and anger coursing through me. She hung up on me. She's never done that before. I feel the rage boiling up inside, the familiar feeling of losing control creeping in around the edges.

"Fuck!" I roar, hurling the phone across the room. It smashes against the wall, shattering into pieces, but it does nothing to ease the fury burning inside me. Nothing can.

I pace the small living room of the apartment I'm in, my chest heaving with each breath, my mind racing with a thousand thoughts—each one darker and more desperate than the last. I can't lose her. I won't lose her. She's all I have left. The only person in this entire fucked-up world who makes me feel like I'm worth something. Without her, I'm nothing.