Twinsequences Ivy (Twisted Twin #2)(11)
In so many ways I felt bad for taking advantage of him. He was risking everything to sneak me out, unbeknownst to him I had no intentions of returning. He’d lose his license, and probably his marriage because of me, and the poor doctor didn’t have a clue it was about to happen.
I’d never dressed so fast, all the while considering my next move, as if my life depended on it. Wearing nurses attire, Mikael led me out of the locked double doors. Even still inside, I felt free. We traveled down several different hallways, finally coming to another set of security doors. Mikael flashed his identification in front of the scanner and the lock unfastened. He took me by the side of my arm and pulled me outside, finally letting go as we made our way to the parking lot.
The cool brisk air felt great on my face. I hadn’t been out at nighttime in years. As much as I wanted to savor the moment, I knew he was in a hurry to leave the premises.
I should have known he drove a BMW – he was preppy to a fault. I snickered while ambling toward the passenger side door and climbing in. Once we were both closed in, he finally spoke. “When I came in tonight there was a new guy at the gate. He won’t know you’re not an employee. As long as I get you back here before seven in the morning, we’re covered.”
I leaned over and kissed him gently, thanking him for doing this. He’d never know how grateful I was, and it was in that exact moment when I knew I couldn’t involve him, not in the way I’d originally planned. “Give me your cell phone.”
“What? Why? You can’t call someone, Ivy. No one can know you’re out.”
“I know,” I said while reaching in his right pocket. I pulled out the device, rolled down the window, and chucked it into the lot. “That’s why I’m covering your tracks. You can say I held you at knife-point.”
“Ivy, you’re coming back tomorrow. There’s no need to make up excuses.”
I don’t know why, but I could feel a burning sensation happening in my throat. The idea of lying to him, even though I’d done it many times, was tearing me apart. His innocent eyes stared at me, waiting for a response. While I considered how to break it to him, he began to leave the parking lot.
He waved to the security guy, watching as he raised the bar so we could continue. I turned back and watched it slowly going back down. No sirens went off. It was silent. My plan had worked. I was officially out of the institution and free to go about my plan of reclaiming my life.
The burning continued, followed by tears forming in my eyes. Mikael, assuming we were about to spend the night together, reached over and placed his hand on my thigh. I kept my eyes focused on the road, unable to let him see how emotional I was becoming. For a moment I imagined the last three years, and out of that time, how much Mikael had brought something other than gloom to my life. Every bone in my body wanted to be selfish and cast him off, but I knew I wouldn't be able to without regret; much like the kind I felt for Rafe.
There was not time to think much more about it. "I need you to know the truth."
"What truth? Ivy, what are you talking about? The truth about what? Don't tell me you're having doubts about us after all I've done to risk this."
"This isn't about doubts. It's about divulging the truth about my intentions. I've led you on, and a part of me wishes I could have kept my feelings for you at bay. This all could have been much easier."
"I'm not following you."
"I took advantage of you from the beginning. At first, I remained focused, but now I know I was a fool to think I could deny myself human emotions just to follow my plan." I turned and looked out the window as I continued. "You were a pawn in my plan to escape. I seduced you for the privilege it would provide me. I knew it would take a while, but it would give me ample time to strategize."
"What are you talking about? We've been involved for years. Are you telling me you were faking?"
Determined to end the betrayal, I sucked out my fears and started explaining. It was unlike me to get emotional, especially considering how determined I’d been. “It wasn’t all a lie. I mean, at first I needed someone to believe me – to be on my side.”
He rubbed his hands over his face, and I could tell it was hitting him hard. “This is unbelievable. Do you have any idea what I’ve risked to be with you?”
“You said you loved me. I never forced your hand. You made the choices yourself. No one tied you down and pushed you to sleep with me.”
“We’re going back inside,” he ordered. Right away the car was being turned in the opposite direction. I grabbed the wheel to keep him from going further.
“No, please. You can’t.”
He was obviously stronger than me, taking my hands and removing them from the wheel. “You’re going back, and you can forget about me helping you. As of this moment I’m no longer your doctor. You’ll be reassigned, and I’ll make sure they know you’re nothing but a conniving bitch.”
In that moment I knew I had to get out of the car. If we hit the security gates I’d be back to square one, and also forced to spend some quality time in a padded cell. I wasn’t about to let it happen.
With one hand still fighting him, I took the other and unlocked my passenger side door. It was a matter of managing the seconds just right. Since I couldn’t let him know what I was thinking, I began opening the door before speaking. He was too focused on the road to realize what I was about to do. It wasn’t difficult letting my body fall out of the moving vehicle. My feet hit first, shooting the rest of my body down, and then spinning it into a violent roll. Immediately I could feel the skin on parts of me stinging. I was scraped up pretty bad, watching as brake lights lit up the empty road. Then I saw the white illuminate, signaling he was backing up. I took in my surroundings, noticing a patch of suburban homes to my left. Darting as fast as my aching body would take me, I rushed toward them, praying I’d make it before he could catch me. I hid behind a set of high bushes, making sure he’d move on and give up.