They should have left that night. Her and her mother should have left the night Imaani left. Micah's wife had run away from everything with just the clothes on her back. The woman had left the man Anaya wanted almost as badly as she needed her next breath. Pain pierced her chest as she opened the door to his study. The scent of alcohol washed over her as she slipped in.
The servants avoided this room. Micah’s temper terrified them. His growls warned of danger. The broken glass and furniture was a hazard. Anaya gripped the skirt of her dress and slowly approached him. His head was bent low. His cotton white shirt was soiled beyond repair. His pants were ripped.
“Get out.”
“I don’t think I will.” Her voice held steady.
Glass crunched beneath the soles of her shoes as she approached him. Sunlight filtered down on them, warming her skin and casting a harsh light on the destruction. He blamed her. She was his scrape goat. The reason, his lies had fallen to dust once the truth came to rear its head.
Micah slowly lifted his head. His dreads falling back as he lifted a bottle half filled with what looked like whiskey. He brought the bottle to his lips and took a swig before throwing the bottle at her face. Anaya ducked and jumped as the bottle hit the wall to her left. Her heart shuddered as her eyes filled with tears.
He was supposed to be her protector. Her beloved. Yet he was the only man who could bring her to tears. Anaya stumbled a step before she steeled herself. Her mother was beginning to grow impatient. She saw this situation as proof of Anaya’s weakness. How could she lead the tribe when she could not curb her mate?
“Get. Out.”
Anaya stood before him. “You always hurt me.”
“Get out.”
“You stab me in the heart.”
“Leave than.”
Anaya looked down at the ground carefully before lowering herself to her knees. The waxed wooden floors were hard on her knees, but it was nothing compared to what the man before caused. The skirt of her dress flowed out around her. The colorful pattern adding a deceptive feeling of cheer. Anaya tucked her feet together and looked into his dark brown eyes. Her unshed tears blurred her vision just a bit.
“I have been your best friend.”
“You are a curse.”
“I have loved you for as long as I have known what love is.” Anaya heard the heartbreak in his voice and it tore at her.
“You let your jealousy ruin me.” Micah sneered at her.
Shaking her head in denial she met his angry gaze. “I have tried to give you everything.”
“You wanted to trap me.”
Anaya’s breath deserted her. The hatred in his eyes was pure and it hit her like a punch in the gut. This was not her doing. It was his. He lied to Imani. Hid the most important parts of himself from her. Yet, she was the destroyer?
“You betrayed me.”
“No." Micah growled. "You did the betraying. You hated that I wanted someone else. To be something else. So you destroyed everything.”
Anaya shook her head. “Imaani ran from the truth. From the shattered lies you told her.”
“You have destroyed all of my trust.”
It was as if they were having two separate conversations. He heard nothing she said. Her hands clenched as she fought down her sadness and anger to reach for her empathy. They could rip each other apart or begin to heal the wounds already inflicted. He needed to blame someone. Anaya had given him she could. She could give him this. If they could get away from this.
"I begged you to love me. Trust me. To stay by my side. You left and I... I forgave you. So forgive me." Anaya begged as tears fell from her eyes
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