Every Vow You Break(54)

“Yes, it crossed my mind.”

“And you did it anyway.”

Eric, already perched on the edge of the upholstered chair, moved forward another half inch. “Listen,” he said. “You don’t have to remind me that what I did was despicable. I know that what I did was despicable. I knew it when I took the job, and while I was doing it, and afterwards. I’m trying to help you out now because I agree with you, something fucked up is happening here, and I think it probably has something to do with me, with what happened that night. But I’m on your side now.”

“And is that why you came here? Because you were worried something bad might happen?”

“It occurred to me, of course. I mean, if what I was doing was helping your groom run a fidelity test, then you failed, obviously.”

“Obviously,” Abigail said.

“So I was surprised when I saw that the wedding was still happening. So, yes, part of my actions were because I was worried about you, but, really, the truth is, the other truth is, I really did fall for you that night. Or maybe it’s just transference or obsession, I don’t know. You do remind me of my wife who died, but that’s not all of it. And maybe it had something to do with the guilt I had about what I was doing to you. I couldn’t get you out of my mind. It was torture, and so I decided to come to New York to look for you, find a way to convince you that you needed to be with me.”

“What about the wedding?” Abigail said.

“What about it?”

“You were there, weren’t you? I think I saw you at the end of the night.”

He let a breath out. “Okay, yeah. I wasn’t going to approach you or anything. It’s just … I don’t know what I thought. I thought something might happen, because at this point it wasn’t just about you and me, it was also about the man you married. As you said, he gave you a test.”

“And I didn’t pass,” she said.

Eric smiled tightly. “No,” he said.

“Did it occur to you that if Bruce was behind the whole thing, he might know who you were?” she asked.

“That’s why I used a fake name. I came up with Scott Baumgart because of Scottie, of course, and Baumgart was my mother’s maiden name. I was still paranoid that your husband would know who I was. It was partly why I talked with him on the beach. I needed to know if he recognized me, and I don’t think he did. Then you went and used my real name.”

“That’s why you were freaked out. I could tell.”

“Yes, I was shocked you knew my real name, but I also realized that if Bruce hired me, he might know it as well. I don’t know if it matters now.”

“Why do you say that?”

“You’re clearly being punished, or you’re about to be punished for what happened in California. That’s why I’m telling you about this, because I think it has to do with what’s going on here.”

“What does it have to do with Jill Greenly and what happened to her?”

“I don’t know. She’s on her honeymoon, right? Maybe she failed some sort of test like you did.”

Abigail nodded. “We talked some, Jill and I. There was an old boyfriend of hers here, and she was freaked out about it. It was strange because it was similar to my situation. I mean, what are the chances that there are two honeymooning brides at a resort— the only two honeymooning brides—and each of them has someone they’ve slept with show up unexpectedly?”

“But I actually am here unexpectedly,” Eric said. “So maybe it’s a coincidence.”

“I keep playing that game with myself. The coincidence game.

Trying to figure out if there’s some kind of conspiracy going on or if I’m just putting all these things together.”

“What things?”

She told him about the clearing in the woods, about the sign with the etching of the man’s face made from leaves, and how she found a ring in Bruce’s travel bag with the same face.

“He’s a part-owner here, right?”

“That’s what I figured, too. But why did he hide the ring from me?”

“Maybe he wasn’t hiding it. Maybe he just doesn’t wear it.”

“See, now you’re doing it. Making up excuses for all these things that don’t make sense. Maybe the phone really is out.

Maybe I really did dream I saw Jill Greenly outside my bunk—”

“That part we know is true. I saw her, too.”

“So what do you think is the most logical explanation? What’s your best guess?”

“If we assume that I was hired by your husband to test you, then he knows that you cheated on him. And if it was important enough for him to even set up the test in the first place, then he must have brought you here for a reason. He’s going to punish you in some way.”

“So what do you think I should do?”

Eric thought for a moment, rubbing a finger along the patch of hair under his lower lip.

“Tell your husband you know what he did, and that you’re leaving him. And then move in here with me and we’ll wait for the plane together.”

“I’m not … I don’t have feelings for you. If anything … I feel like I was raped by you.”

Eric looked down at the floor. “I know. You should hate me, but I’m telling you that you can also trust me. And it’s also possible that I may be able to protect you for the rest of the time on this island. You can move in with me. It’ll be the two of us, at least, against all of them. Not great odds, but better odds than you had before.”