A Forever Masterpiece (The Masterpiece Trilogy Book 3) (19 page)

"Thank you, Becca. Truly," Cherie said. "This means a lot that you'd come out here to see us on a day meant to be with loved ones. Thank you for thinking of us."

"You can't stay?" Henry stood before her, tugging on her hand.

"No, buddy. It's been a long day, the snow is falling, and I need to get back. I'm sorry." She'd have to come back real soon.

Disappointment dragged his shoulders down, and his face fell. "Okay. Tell Hunter hi for me."

"I will."

"Nice meeting you, Rissi." Cherie waved.

On the way out, Rissi whispered to Becca. "I feel terrible for them."

"My thoughts exactly," Becca replied.

"Henry seems so attached to you."

"I think he senses how much I understand his situation. It puts so much into perspective, doesn't it?"

Rissi and family left for home Friday afternoon, and that evening, Joe and Sandra waited for their cab. Talk about tense. The last twenty four hours had been that way. While Becca, Rissi, Chad, and Jade went out Friday morning, Hunter was left to deal with Joe. He'd actually been the one to suggest to Becca for them to go out, because she wasn't anywhere near ready to talk to Joe. Now that it was time for them to leave, Hunter figured he'd better say something. Becca was upstairs working on paintings to bring to Brock, so he left her to her peace.

"You know the events haunt me every damn day of my life. I'd give anything for your father to be alive. It kills me that you don't trust me." Joe studied Hunter intently.

Hunter held back a retort. "Can you blame me, though? I don't want to not trust you. Other than Becca, Shara, Todd, and Beverly, I'm not sure who I can trust. It's not a good feeling when half the people in my life have secrets. Someone is determined to expose them all. I can't take much more. Neither can Becca, and she's coming in at her breaking point, which worries me. You want my trust? Earn it, Joe. I love you. You've been like family and I'm glad we reconnected, because you opened up a part of my past I'd lost, but I don't trust you yet."

A car honked from outside, signaling the cab had arrived.

"Your father would hate this between us right now." Joe reached for his rolling bag.

"My father would hate all these lies," Hunter snapped back. "Don't bring him into this. He's not here to defend himself. Take care, Joe. You too, Sandra. Keep me updated on any more texts or weird stuff." If his father had lived, maybe these events would be different. But they weren't.

"We will," Sandra promised. Unlike Joe, she reached out to hug him tight.

Hunter stiffened, but he went with it, returning the gesture. He knew she hated to be in the middle of this with him and Joe. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

"We all are. No one likes this position we're in." Sandra nodded, moved back, and exited the house.

Joe hesitated, staring at Hunter with a huge flash of remorse in his eyes. "I don't blame you for being angry, either of you. What hurts me the most is you think I had anything to do with the crash itself. It was spur of the moment, getting you guys on a flight and to where the Langes were on vacation. I didn't know about the pilot's suspension. I didn't know a damn thing about any of that! I don't even know what went down on the plane to and from, especially with Sylvia. All I knew was that there was a lot going on at once. Becca's brother came looking for her, Sylvia found her step dad, and a huge case. Hunter-"

"It's still a lot to take in. You'd better go," Hunter said when the cab honked again.

"I'll call you when we land." Joe's lips turned downward. Hunter almost felt bad for the guy. "Bye." He pulled the door shut behind him.

Hunter headed for the window and drew the curtain back a little, watching as his old friend staggered down the sidewalk toward the waiting cab. He heaved a sigh, unsure if it was one of relief or sadness.

"Are they gone?" Becca's quiet voice pulled him from his thoughts.

He faced her. "Yeah."

"I guess I should have said good-bye."

"You didn't have to. At least now the tension is over since they left. I still-" He sighed again. "Damn it. I can't shake my frustration."

"I can't either. I tried painting. My hands are shaking so much that I can't make a straight line if my life depended on it." Becca crossed the room, straight to Hunter's arms. "Know what's sad? I still feel kinda guilty about Nathan. There was already enough unnecessary death. His life changed because of certain events. Maybe he needed closure, even in a sick way of trying to hurt us, but I can't shake the guilt that he died because I fought him off."

"Don't say because of you. We've already had this discussion," Hunter warned, holding her close. Yeah, he got the guilt feeling all too damn well.

"I wasn't going to. Not this time. Not like that, anyway." Becca stiffened, then pulled away. "I just thought of something. We're getting texts. Joe got one. Vince at least knew something happened. What if-?"

Hunter put two and two together. "Vince tipped him off?" he finished.

"Oh God, I didn't even think of that. I was wondering if maybe he got a message, too. Or my- the Langes. Maybe someone tipped Nathan off. If we're all being watched. I don't know..." Becca puckered her lips in thought.

He muttered under his breath. "If the Langes did, wouldn't they have called us by now, wondering what we were up to?"

Becca's eyelids lowered. "Maybe. Vince said something about my grandmother not being well. Maybe guilt is affecting her."

"I doubt those people have a heart that isn't made of stone," Hunter scoffed. "Like they'd ever feel guilty."

"I don't know if there's ever been a time we've both been this angry, not at once." Becca held his hands. She was definitely still shaking.

"I've got an idea to help relieve some of it. I haven't done this before, but it was suggested by someone at a meeting," Hunter recalled.

"What?"

"Take it out on a punching bag. We'll get everything out by hitting something that won't hurt an actual person. Might not be a bad idea."

Becca seemed to think about her answer before she said anything. "Let's do it. I need something."

Hunter handed her a pair of boxing gloves and led her to a private room which he snagged for the next half hour at a gym. The sound of squeaking shoes against the floor in the room across from them stole her attention. Some members were playing basketball.

Dim lights barely lit up the room. A black punching bag hung from a bar in the middle. Hunter closed the door, secluding them in the small space. "It's even soundproof." He nodded at the wall nearest the door. "Which is good, because I feel like yelling. A lot. I say let's push out some of this anger, and then go do something that a happily engaged couple would do on a Friday night."

Still shaky, Becca tried to put the gloves on without dropping them. Hunter set his down and helped. "Works for me."

Hunter held up her gloved hands. "Hey. I love you. In a matter of months, I'll be watching you walk down the aisle and take my name. It doesn't get better than that. Our wedding plans have been overshadowed by this mess of our past, and I'm tired of it. We'll work through it all, but most importantly, we're going to have a beautiful life together. We both deserve that chance." He kissed her forehead gently, letting his lips linger there as he held her close. "I'd give you the moon and stars, if I could."

Becca leaned into his arms. "I love you, too. So much." She didn't need the moon and stars. She just needed Hunter in her world forever.

He pulled away and stared at her, love reflecting in his eyes. "Here's what we do. Whatever we're angry at, say it as we hit the bag. Yell as if it's the person, or just the situation. I don't care. Hit as hard as you can. I'll start, if you want." He put his own gloves on.

Becca took a few steps back, watching Hunter in silence. He did a series of stretches before he started. His expression masked into one of serious concentration. He pulled a gloved hand back, then let the bag have it. "I'm tired of all the lies and secrets!" he yelled, pulling back and hitting again. The bag tossed and turned at his every punch.

Becca's jaw dropped slightly. She knew Hunter was angry, felt it too, but to see just how much pent up energy he held in kinda scared her.

"I'm tired of not knowing the truth!" he went again, this time with even more fury. Sweat already poured down his red face, which he wiped away quickly before returning to a fighting stance. "Most of all, I'm tired of having to fight so hard for the life I want! I know it doesn't come easy, but we never seem to catch a break!" The bag flew backward, almost hitting the bar as Hunter let them fly. Then he stopped, breathed in and out deeply, and faced Becca. "I could almost do this for hours," he said softly. "It doesn't give us answers, but it lets it all out." Hunter gestured at the bag, swinging from the beam. It slowed to a stop after a few seconds. "Wanna give it a go?"

She so did. Becca moved to where Hunter had just been. She stared at the now unmoving bag. Hunter stood close behind her. He leaned in close. "Get it all out, angel. You need to let it go before it tears you down. I'm going to be right here. Whatever you're angry at, take it out on that bag. Don't hold back."

His words were comforting. Becca nodded in response. Hunter stepped back, and she inhaled a good, deep breath before letting loose.

"Here goes," she whispered, then raised her voice to a yell. "I'm angry that I've found the one for me, but we can't even enjoy our firsts together without all this drama, lies, and danger!"
Thwack!
Becca's fist connected with the bag, sending it flying. "I'm angry at my grandparents for never making me feel wanted and never telling me why! I'm angry that I grew up learning to hold in my true feelings, and it still affects me to this day!" She was on a roll. Energy sizzled in the air with each punch.

Faster and faster, Becca let it out. "I'm angry that I don't know who I am! I went for years thinking I was one person, until a hurtful woman changed it all! I'm angry that I replaced a dead child! I'm sure as hell angry that I will never get to see my family as what I knew them as- family! And I'm angry about feeling guilty for someone's death on my hands when he had every intent on hurting me!" Becca got so close that when the bag swung back toward her, it knocked her backwards. Tears streamed down her cheeks as her heartbeat sped up. Hunter caught her. He pulled off her gloves, then his, and swept her in his arms. "It hurts so damn much!" She sobbed against him. She couldn't breathe. Sweat and tears streamed down her face, stinging her eyes.

"I know, sweetheart, I know." Hunter's own voice was full of pain as he hugged her tight. One hand moved up to her hair as he combed his fingers through it gently. They clung to each other in the middle of that room, both letting out their anger and then tears as they held on tight. Her entire body ached from tension and the released anger. A small weight had been lifted off her shoulders, but she had a long way to go.

"Bec- what you said ... no wonder your art has been drastically different lately. I mean, I know what happened to you, or at least the version we were told, but I never really thought about it that way. Then again, it wasn't me it happened to." Hunter's voice was hoarse. His eyes were moist when he pulled back to look at her.

Becca wiped his eye with her thumb gently, longing to take his hurts away. "It's what I feel like. A replacement. I know it was supposedly to keep me safe from whatever deadly fate my brother got me out of, but I don't know anything other than I became Rebecca Lange, the baby who never had a chance. From the few things I remember from Mom and Dad, they loved me. No denying that. They raised me like I was their own, but it doesn't erase an emptiness I feel for becoming someone's replacement."

His gaze landed on her, lips pressed in a thin line. "I wish I could fix that void for you. I wish I could take away all of your pain. It hurts like hell to hear you say what you did. All I ever wanted was the best for you. I know it's way beyond my control, but was always important to me." He caressed her cheek. "Wanna get out of here? I've never seen so much anger come from you. I think we had the right idea tonight. No holding back. We'll come back as often as we need to. Your muscles are still tense, though." Hunter rubbed her shoulders.

"I'm ready. I knew I was holding back, but didn't know it was this much." Becca moaned when he worked out a knot.

He stopped a short while later, backed away from her, and stooped to pick up the gloves. Becca followed him out of the room in silence. Hunter handed the gloves and towels back to the guy behind the desk, then took Becca's hand. Halfway toward the door, Hunter stopped. He craned his neck. Becca couldn't figure out why. Did he see something? Someone? "Jesse's here," he whispered.

Worry crept inside her gut. "Where?"

Hunter pointed. Jesse/Everett wasn't looking their way, but she could tell that was the guy from outside her apartment door. The hair on the back of her neck raised. "That's definitely him, Hunter. The same guy."

He froze in place. She needed to get him out of here before he did something crazy.

Becca tugged on his hand. "Don't. Don't do anything. Let's just get out of here. Jed's right. If this guy is tailing us, don't give him reason to react. Let's go before he sees us." When Hunter didn't move, Becca tried again.
"Please."

Too late. Hunter didn't go after Jesse, but the man turned around, and his eyes went wide when he met their gaze. His eyes locked with hers for a second. She recognized that same intense look, those same grayish eyes. The connection faded quick. Then he glanced back at them again, a look of fear and worry mixed in his eyes. Jesse bolted right after, heading toward the locker rooms.

Becca and Hunter left the building fast. "I don't think we were meant to see him."

"That look in his eyes. He's guilty of something, Bec. He would have said something to us otherwise, not freak out and run," Hunter said breathlessly as they climbed in their vehicle and peeled out of the parking lot.

Chapter Sixteen