Chapter 90

• Haven sat in the driver's seat of his car, stopped beneath the canopy of a large oak tree in the stop where he and Alexis used to require long strolls. The stop was purge now, with the sun starting its plummet, casting a brilliant shine over the calm scene. Haven ’s hands rested intensely on the steering, his knuckles bruised and rough from the prior battle. His right eye throbbed, a reminder of the blows exchanged with Matthew.
• As he sat there, gazing at the park in a distance where children once giggled, an empty throb settled in his chest, heavier than the physical torment. He wiped the blood from his busted lip with the back of his hand, eyes narrowing as he saw movement close the park's entrance. Alexis was walking toward Matthew, her face carved with stress, totally overlooking Haven who sat dying in the car. She didn’t indeed see in hiscar. No look of concern, no faltering as she animated her steps to reach the man who had been his best friend, and she is l now, the man who had taken everything from him.
• The bruise on his ribs from where Matthew had landed a punch burned each time he drew breath, but it was nothing compared to the anguish of watching Alexis tend to Matthew with the kind of care she hadn’t showed Haven in a long time. He observed, jaw clenched, as she stooped close to Matthew, who was sitting on the control holding his chin, his face bended in torment.