The Marvelous Elijah's Return novel Chapter 42

I will make them pay

Looking at Peach’s eyes, Elijah sighed, walked away from her, and then sat on the edge of his bed, burying his head in his hands, sighing heavily. 

“My dad was a hard-working man. He loved my mother like crazy and always tried his best to be a good father and husband. He was funny, caring, and intelligent. He had a good heart…” Peach uttered, pausing as her eyes filled with tears and her voice trailed off. 

Slowly, Elijah raised his head and looked at Peach with a concerned expression, keeping his silence. 

Taking another deep breath, Peach continued her story, “When my grandfather passed, Madam Jewel suddenly turned against my father, drove us out of the mansion, and from then on she and her children suppressed our family with all of their power…” 

When she caught Elijah’s eyes, he patted the side of the bed next to him, smiling sadly at her when he noticed her trembling slightly. Pushing back her hair behind her ear and taking a few steps towards him, Peach walked over to him, sitting on the bed beside him, staring at the tiles as she remembered her childhood. “My dad, for an unknown reason, became the enemy of the Hayes family… up to now, I don’t understand why they all turn on us so quickly…” Peach muttered quietly, shaking her head in disbelief. 

Nervously, she picked at her nails, playing with her fingers as she remembered the events that took place in their lives. 

“My father was never violent to any of them… I know he’s the legitimate son and all, but it’s like… once grandfather passed, a switch went off, and they treated him and us so cruelly like we were nothing more than trash…” Peach spat bitterly, glaring at the floor. 

Silence enveloped them for a while, and Peach began playing with her fingers again, still fiddling with them nervously, and her thoughts drifted back to her grandfather’s death. 

“Grandfather… he was supposed to undergo surgery, and the doctor confirmed that he had an eighty percent chance of coming out of it healthy and alive…” Peach said, her voice trailing off at the end, her eyes filling with fresh tears. 

She blinked rapidly to keep the tears at bay, not wanting to cry anymore as she whispered,” But before he could undergo the surgery, his heart suddenly stopped. My dad tried to find out what happened… that’s when the nightmare began…” “Do you really believe that Madam Jewel really had a hand in her husband’s death?” Elijah asked carefully, looking at her hand. 

When he saw how red the tip of her fingers had gotten from her fingernails biting into her flesh, he reached out and laced his fingers with hers, intertwining their hands together so he would stop her from hurting herself any further. Peach glanced at his hand, then stared back at him, noticing the sadness and concern etched onto his face, and she sighed, squeezing his hand tight and nodding her head solemnly. “Yes…” Peach replied quietly, her voice full of sorrow, “There are so many mysteries behind this whole thing. How my grandfather died, why everyone started targeting my mother and 

me… why my grandfather’s doctor and his lawyer went silent… why no one seemed to care… it’s all such a mess…” 

Silence consumed them both as Peach fell quiet for a while before she whispered, “Mother and I are somewhat used to all the pain and suffering we’ve experienced over the years… We are Hayes, and that’s our death sentence… for some unknown reason. But you, Elijah…” 

Looking up to meet his eyes, Peach rested her palm against his cheek as she brushed her thumb slowly against his cheekbone, caressing it gently as tears rolled down her face silently. 

“You have the chance to escape all of this… start up fresh, somewhere else and forget about all of this shit, and just live happily ever after,” Peach breathed softly as she gazed at Elijah with a serious expression. “Hmm,” Elijah mumbled, studying her eyes. “So, please, promise me… you’ll try to leave this place and just start over… forget all of the problems, all the pain, and everything that has happened… Just move on, Elijah… and live…” “Even if I agree to leave this motel as you want, Peach, I don’t plan to move out of Syldavia.” 

Silently, Peach looked at his hand intertwined with hers and frowned, feeling her chest tighten slightly. She wanted him to go… she needed him to go.. “Elijah, I like you… like a lot, and I don’t want to lose you, too… I just… I can’t lose anyone else. It hurts too much when it happens…” Peach pleated desperately, trying hard not to show how broken she felt inside as she spoke to him. 

A confession was what he just got, and Elijah didn’t expect it, and he immediately felt guilty because he knew what he felt for her… what he wanted from her, but it wasn’t love. And it would probably never be love. 

Sure, they kissed a couple of times, but that didn’t mean that he wanted her… didn’t mean that he wanted to fall in love with her…. with any woman. 

But he was human, and what he felt for Peach was care… he cared about her, and he wanted to protect her. He wanted to make sure that she wouldn’t be hurt again, that she wasn’t bullied like he was with Melina. And he wanted to protect her from whatever hellish life she had been living all this time. 

“Hey, hey,” Elijah murmured, raising his free hand to wipe away the tears streaming down her cheeks, “Don’t cry. I promise you I won’t let those bastards get away with anything… I will make them pay.” 

He was saying the opposite of what she wanted to hear, but Peach realized that it was useless to argue with him, so she just nodded and sniffed softly. 

With a cocky smile on his face, Dean sat down as his friend, Mason, signaled him to sit on the couch in his office. 

“Dean, good afternoon.” Mason greeted him, smiling as Dean shook his hand before sitting down on the couch opposite of him. After both men took their seats, Mason eyed his secretary, and she immediately asked Dean,” Can I offer you anything, sir?” “No,” Dean said firmly before he turned to look at his friend. 

When she noticed her boss slightly waving his hand, she bowed quietly and then walked away, closing the door softly behind her. Finally, it was just both men in the room and Dean cleared his throat, asking, “Mason, I don’t want to take up much of your time… I know that you and Bryan Checks are part of the League private club… right?” It fell silent as Mason studied Dean’s face for a moment before he smiled and nodded, telling him, “Yeah. Why do you ask?” “Well…” Dean began hesitantly, rubbing the back of his neck nervously, “I was wondering if you would put in some good words with him for me, so I can join the League.” Another long pause took over as Manson’s expression turned serious and thoughtful as he considered what Dean requested. Finally, he broke the tense atmosphere by speaking softly, “Bryan just gave up the last invitation to the club.”