Текст книги "Oblivion"
Автор книги: Jennifer L. Armentrout
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Текущая страница: 37 (всего у книги 51 страниц)
Chapter 28
It was six in the morning, and I sat on Kat’s bed, listening to the shower running in the bathroom and mentally listing all the reasons why it wasn’t a good idea to join her.
I couldn’t come up with one.
But I managed to keep my ass planted on the bed while she got ready for school. We’d spent the entire night together, talking and sleeping in each other’s arms. Despite everything, it had been the best night in a long time. In forever. That didn’t mean I wasn’t thinking about my sister or Adam. That didn’t mean everything was perfect. The moment I let my thoughts wander, they didn’t go to a good place.
I’d checked in with Dee before I headed over to Kat’s house. She wasn’t awake, but I’d talked to Andrew. It hadn’t been an easy call. Not when we talked about how we were going to explain Adam’s death. Publicly for the humans, it would be a car accident. To the nearby Luxen colony and the DOD, if the latter didn’t already know the truth, it would be an Arum attack.
The next couple of days—weeks—were going to be rough.
Kat stepped out of the steamy bathroom, wrapped in a fluffy towel with a robe over the top. She didn’t look surprised to see me even though I hadn’t told her I was sneaking over. Obviously she felt me the moment I got into the house.
She walked over to where I sat. “What are you doing?”
I patted the spot beside me, and she sat on her knees, facing me. “We need to stick close together over the next couple of weeks. I wouldn’t be surprised if the DOD shows. We’re safer together.”
“Is that the only reason?”
A lazy grin pulled at my lips as I reached over, tugging lightly on the belt of her robe. “Not the only reason. Probably the smartest, but definitely not the most pressing.”
Kat smiled slightly as she shook her head. Circling an arm around her waist, I tugged her into my lap. I kissed her forehead. “What are you thinking?”
She tucked her face into my neck. “A lot of things. Do…do you think it’s wrong to be happy right now?”
My arms tightened as I frowned down at her. “Well, I wouldn’t send out a mass text message or anything.” I paused, getting what she meant. “And I’m not entirely happy. I don’t think I’ve really come to terms with everything. Adam was…” I trailed off, throat working.
“I liked him,” she whispered. “I don’t expect Dee to ever forgive me, but I want to see her. I need to make sure she’s okay.”
“She’ll forgive you. She needs time.” I kissed her temple. “Dee knew you tried to warn her off. She called me when you told her to leave, and I told her and Adam to stay out of there, but they parked the car down the street and came back. They made that choice, and I know she’d do it again.”
Her voice hoarsened. “There are so many things I wouldn’t do again.”
“I know.” I placed two fingers under her chin, tipping her head back so our eyes met. “We can’t focus on that now. It’s not going to do any good.”
She stretched up, kissing my lips. “I want to see Dee after school.”
“What are you doing for lunch?”
“Other than eating? Nothing.”
“Good. We’re skipping.”
“Going to see Dee, right?”
I grinned at her. “Yeah, but first, there are things I want to do, and we don’t have nearly enough time for that now.”
She arched a brow. “Are you going to try to squeeze in dinner and a movie then?”
“Kitten, your mind is a terrible and dirty place. I was thinking we could go for a stroll or something.”
“Tease,” she murmured and started to stand, but I held her there.
My eyes locked on hers. “Say it.”
“Say what?”
“Tell me what you told me earlier.”
I felt her heart speed up in her chest and she leaned in, brushing her nose across mine, and said, “I love you.”
Slipping my hand behind her head, I pulled her in for a kiss that made me really want to bring her down to the bed and forget all about school and everything else. “That’s all I ever need to hear.”
“Those three words?” she asked.
“Always those three words.”
Sitting in class was the last place I wanted to be on a normal day, but it was nearly killing me to be here. I wanted to be home with Dee. There wasn’t much I could do for her. Words were never good for grief, but I hated that I couldn’t be there for her. I also wanted to be with Kat. She was in the same building as me, but it wasn’t the same. I wanted her close by and not just because, well, I wanted her near me. I figured if the DOD were going to make a move, they’d do so fast, and I wanted to keep an eye on her.
I had no idea what the shape was that the teacher drew on the chalkboard. The only thing I really saw was how amazing Kat had looked in my bed—how amazing she had felt and tasted. I could still feel her without even trying. It was insane. Mind-blowing.
Stretching my legs out, I still couldn’t believe I’d stopped.
Do it the right way? Man, I was going to need a training bra soon.
But stopping had felt right. We’d gone through a lot of crap and emotions. Honestly, I didn’t want our first time to be marred by grief and leftover anger. Might not have felt like those things would’ve clouded our first time, and maybe they wouldn’t have, but I hadn’t wanted to risk it.
When class finally ended, I made it out into the hallway and pulled my cell out of my pocket. I frowned as I stepped around a cluster of classmates. There was a missed text from Kat that had come in around forty minutes ago. Annoyed that I missed it, I clicked on the text.
Mom N accident. Going 2 hospital.
I came to a complete stop, stomach sinking. God, what else was going to happen?
Where did her Mom work last night? I racked my brain for an answer. Winchester. Roads were still slick in many areas and covered in snow in others. Stepping out of the hallway traffic, I quickly called Kat.
It rang and rang. No answer.
Leaving a short message, I fought the urge to rush out of the school and find Kat. The problem was I didn’t know what hospital she would’ve gone to. It could be anywhere between here and Winchester. I’d have to wait until she got back to me.
Patience was a virtue I didn’t believe in.
Before I headed into my next class, I checked in on Dee. She was as expected. Not good. Sitting through history class was a test in true control. When lunch arrived and I still hadn’t heard from Kat after trying her again and sending a text, I couldn’t stay at the school any longer.
On the way out, I tried her once more. Still no answer, and a sense of unease built in my gut like pools of acid. Cell service was spotty anywhere in town and the whole way into Virginia, but she would’ve made it to Winchester by now and Kat…she would’ve returned my calls, especially after everything that had gone down. Her going radio silent was not normal.
I stopped over at the Thompsons’ house before going home. Sorrow clung to the walls like mold. Spending time with them, I found myself at a loss when it came to what I could say or do. A rare moment in my life, but death was a void that even I couldn’t fully understand. Here one moment and gone the next. Death was that quick. There’d be a private funeral within the community. Adam’s body would be cremated, as was the tradition, and then there’d be nothing.
There was already nothing but memories.
Heavy with those thoughts, I headed to our empty house, where I paced back and forth like a lunatic. Several hours had passed, and with no word from Kat, I started to feel desperate. What if her mom had passed away and she was too distraught to call? What if she had gotten into an accident on the way to the hospital? Her car was still in the driveway next door, so that meant Mr. Michaels most likely picked her up.
Immediately I thought about the link between Will and Bethany. He was her uncle—her sick uncle, but the DOD had no doubt been watching Bethany and Dawson like they’d been watching Kat and me. No one needed to turn them over. The DOD had probably seen everything that had gone down.
Just like they had with Kat and me.
I was halfway to where I left my phone on the coffee table, about to start calling every hospital I could think of, when it rang. There was a dip in my stomach as I shot through the room, picking it up.
“Kat?” I answered.
There was a stretch of silence and then, “No. This isn’t Kat.”
Concern exploded. “Mr. Michaels? Where’s Kat? Is she okay? What—?”
“She’s not…really okay, Daemon.”
I reached out, planting my hand on the wall, legs suddenly weak. That off-kilter sensation was the same thing I felt before the officers had told me about Dawson. I knew Kat had to be alive, but…
“Daemon?”
I took a deep breath. “What happened to her?”
“Nothing irreversible at this point.”
Wait. What? I pushed off the wall, my whole world centering on what Mr. Michaels was saying. “What do you mean by that, Will?”
There was a pause. “Kat is okay. Sort of. Well, she’s definitely not having a lot of fun right now.”
Fury rose like a heat wave. My fingers curled around the cell, grinding the plastic and metal. I didn’t know why he’d done something to Kat. I didn’t care. All I knew was that I would kill him for this. “You son—”
“Now, let’s not waste time. You can fix this, Daemon. Are you listening? You don’t want to miss this.”
“Oh, I’m listening. I’m also taking notes.”
Mr. Michaels laughed drily. “Come to the warehouse. You know exactly which one—and Daemon? I’d hurry if I were you.”
The bastard hung up before I could respond. For a second, I stood there staring at the phone. Shit. Shit. Shit. My skin tingled, and I felt myself lose control of my human form. Tossing the phone aside, I shot toward the door and was halfway down the driveway before I spun back around, heading for the SUV. I didn’t know what was going on with Kat or if she was hurt and how badly. I would need to take the car, which would slow me down.
I broke about ten different speed laws as I raced out of town, toward the warehouse where those two officers had cornered Kat. I called Matthew, who was with Dee and the Thompsons, telling him what happened. They wanted to help, but I told them to go to our house and stay there, just in case…well, just in case shit went real bad.
My mind was blank during the drive. I couldn’t let myself think about anything. I had to keep my cool. I couldn’t let my head go down that road—the one where she was hurt—because after Blake and Adam, I wasn’t sure how I’d deal.
I’d probably lose my shit and expose my entire race.
The sky was a deep blue and cloudless as I pulled into the back of the warehouse. Parking Dolly, I flew out of the car and around the building. The first door I came to was unlocked, which had me on high alert.
Dim lighting in the ceiling cast yellow light over a metal desk and chairs. The stale smell of cigarettes lingered, but there was nothing else. From memory, I darted to the right and up the stairs. There was no time to prepare myself, to really even think about what might be waiting for me. I hit the second-floor landing and pushed the double doors open. The door slammed off cement walls.
What I saw almost brought me to my knees.
Disregarding where Will stood, my eyes locked on Kat. She was in a cage—a fucking cage. Like some kind of rabid animal, chained up. So many emotions rushed me I almost lost complete hold of my human form. Rage and desperation warred with just a flicker of relief. There was Kat. She was in one piece—
Kat made the slightest movement toward me, and her body spasmed. Her mouth dropped open in a silent scream.
Cold fear whipped through me as I shot forward and gripped the bars. Sharp red-hot pain lanced my palms, and I jerked back. “What is this?” I glanced down at my palms and then at where the metal circled her wrists. I was going to be sick, for the first time in my life.
“Onyx mixed with ruby and hematite,” Will answered. “A nice combination that doesn’t sit well with the Luxen or hybrids.”
I looked at Will. “I will kill you.”
“No, I don’t think you will.” Will moved a few steps back, though. “Onyx covers every entrance to this building, so I know you can’t pull in any power or use the light. I also have the keys to that cage and those handcuffs. And only I can touch any part of that.”
“Maybe not now, but I will,” I growled low in my throat. “You can believe that.”
That was a promise I would keep.
“And you can believe that I’ll be ready for that day.” Will arched an eyebrow at Kat. “She’s been in there for a while. I think you understand what that means. Shall we move this along?”
Turning away from him, I approached the other side of the pen and knelt. Kat turned her head toward me. Pressure clamped down on my chest. Dear God, seeing her like this ripped me into shreds. “I’m going to get you out of there, Kitten. I swear to you.”
“As sweet as your declaration is, the only way you’ll get her out of there is to do as I say, and we only have”—he checked his Rolex—“about thirty minutes before the next round of officers arrives, and while I have every intention of letting you both go, they won’t.”
I lifted my head, seconds from planting my fist in his face. “What do you want?”
“I want you to mutate me.”
I stared at Will, wondering if he’d lost his damn mind. I laughed. “Are you insane?”
Will’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t need to explain everything to you. She knows. She can fill you in. I want you to change me.” He reached over the cage, wrapping his fingers around the bundle of chains. “I want to become what she is.”
“I can’t just twitch my nose and make it happen.”
“I know how it works.” He sneered. “I have to be wounded. You have to heal me, and the rest I can take care of.”
I shook my head. “What is the rest?”
Once again, Will looked at Kat and smiled. “Katy can fill you in on that.”
“You’ll fill me in right now,” I snarled, losing whatever control I had.
“Or not.” Will yanked on the chains, and Kat buckled.
Her scream was just a whimper, but it cut through me like a rusted knife. I shot up. “Stop it. Let the chains go.”
“But you haven’t even heard what I’m offering.” He yanked on the chains.
Kat’s back bowed completely off the dirty floor of the pen. Her lashes swept down and her face took on a fine sheen of sweat.
Horror roared through me like a tempest. I moved to the front of the cage, hands closing into useless fists. “Let the chains go. Please.”
Will released the chains, and she slumped against the pen. “This is my deal. Mutate me, and I’ll give you the key to the cage, but I’m not stupid, Daemon.”
“You’re not?” I snickered.
The older man’s lip twitched. “I need to make sure you don’t come after me as soon as I leave here, which I know you will once she’s removed from that cage.”
“Am I that predictable? I may have to change up my game.”
Will let out an exasperated breath. “When I leave here, you will not follow me. We have less than twenty minutes to do this, and then you’ll have only thirty minutes, give or take a few, to go to the address I’ve given to Katy.”
I glanced at Kat. “Is this a scavenger hunt? I do so love them.”
“Possibly.” Will slowly approached me, pulling out a gun. “You’ll have a choice to make after you let her out of the cage. You can come after me or you can get the one thing you’ve always wanted.”
“What? A tattoo of your face on my ass?”
Will’s cheeks flushed with anger. “Your brother.”
My heart stopped and every muscle in my body clenched up as I took a step back. “What?”
“I’ve paid a lot of money to get him in a position where he could’ve ‘escaped.’ Besides, I doubt they’ll really be searching for him.” Will smiled. “He’s proven to be quite useless. But you—you, on the other hand, are stronger. You’ll succeed where he’s failed time and time again.”
“Failed…at what?” Kat croaked.
My head swung toward her, my eyes narrowing. Her voice…it sounded raw and painful. For that alone I wanted to wipe the floor with Will’s entrails.
“They’ve been forcing him to mutate humans,” he explained. “It hasn’t been working. He’s not as strong as you, Daemon. You are different.”
I drew in a breath. Will was offering something I couldn’t turn down—my brother, my blood. There was still a huge part of me that just wanted to rip into him. “I’d prefer to hunt you down and break every bone in your body for what you’ve done. Rip your flesh off your body slowly and then feed it to you for hurting Kat. But my brother means more than vengeance.”
Will paled. “I was hoping that would be your decision.”
I’m sure he was. Murder was in my eyes. “You know, you have to be hurt for this to work.”
Will nodded, aiming the gun at his leg. “I know.”
Hell, I was disappointed. Shooting him would make me feel a smidgen better. “I was so hoping I was going to get to inflict the damage.”
“Yeah, I don’t think so.”
I could only watch as Will closed his eyes and shot himself in the leg. It was the craziest thing I’d seen. He didn’t even groan as the bullet tore through his flesh. I stepped forward, wrapping my hands around Will’s arm, tipping my chin down to hide my satisfied smile. Will thought he had all of this figured out.
He was so wrong I would love to be there to witness it.
I healed Will, and in that second for the wound to seal up, I sent him an extra special message that only he could hear. You think this will be the last of me? You’re wrong. I will haunt every step you take for hurting her. That’s a check my foot is going to cash in your ass.
Will jerked back. His eyes held mine for a moment, and I recognized the fear in his gaze. I smiled.
Unnerved, he lurched to the cage and unlatched the cage door. He slipped the manacles off her wrists. “I suggest you don’t tell your mother about this. After all, it would kill her.” He smiled, and I wanted to punch it off his face. “Behave, Katy.”
Then Will was out of the cage and gone.
“Daemon…”
“I’m here.” Carefully entering the cage, I helped her out. “I’ve got you, Kitten. It’s over.”
I knew we were on a timeline, but I cradled her against my chest, smoothing my hands along her damp cheeks. Healing warmth radiated from my touch, seeping into her. I moved back from the cage, holding her so close I was sure I was never going to let her go again.
She gently brushed my hands away once she was standing on her own. Her voice was throaty and low when she spoke. “I’m all right.”
An almost inhuman sound came from me and I clutched her cheeks, bringing her mouth to mine. The kiss tasted of desperation and relief. When I pulled away, she was gasping for air.
“What did you do?” she asked.
I pressed my forehead against hers. Our lips brushed as I spoke. “For the mutation to work, both parties have to be willing, Kitten. Remember what Matthew said? I wasn’t entirely into it, if you get my drift. And not to mention, he needed to be dying or close to it. The mutation probably won’t work. At least not to the extent he thinks.”
She laughed, the sound rasping. “Evil genius.”
“You betcha,” I replied, my gaze roaming over her as I threaded my fingers through hers. “You sure you’re okay? Your voice…”
“Yeah,” she whispered. “I’ll be okay.”
I kissed her again, pouring everything I felt for her into it. I wanted to erase the harsh memory of her time here. I wanted to shield her from ever experiencing something like this again. My hands dropped to her waist and I held her against me, letting her feel just how badly I wanted her, so there was no doubt that she was it for me. She was mine.
I was hers. A truth that would never change.
I sighed against her mouth. “Now let’s go get my brother.”
Chapter 29
Kat’s sweater and shoes had disappeared, so I tugged the heavy wool sweater I was wearing off and over her head. The cold wouldn’t affect me as much. I picked her up and raced out of the warehouse since her feet were completely unprotected. Hybrid—mutated, whatever—she was still more human than me.
I used the Source to open the passenger door and then gently placed her in the seat. I grabbed the seat belt.
“I can do it,” she mumbled.
I was unable to move as I watched her hands tremble as she fumbled with the seat belt. Jesus, what had happened in there to her? I wanted to ask her, but there wasn’t time. I backed off, moving wicked fast around the front. In a second, I was behind the steering wheel. “Ready?”
She leaned back against the seat, her shoulders slumped and eyes barely open. Weariness invaded her expression. “You could leave me. You’d be faster…without me.”
My brows shot up as I eased the SUV around the Dumpsters. “I’m not leaving you.”
“I’ll be fine. I can stay in the car and…you can just do your zippy speed stuff.”
I shook my head. “Not going to happen. We have time.”
“But—”
“Not going to happen, Kat.” I gunned it out of the parking lot. “I’m not leaving you alone. Not for a freaking second, okay? We have time.” I brushed the hair off my forehead with one hand, my jaw clenching tightly. “When I got your message about your mom and when you didn’t respond back to me, I thought maybe you were already at the hospital in Winchester, so I called and when they told me your mom hadn’t been admitted…” I shook my head as I flew down the road. “I thought the worst—I thought they’d gotten you. And I was ready to tear this whole damn town apart. And then I got the call from Will…so, yeah, I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
“I’m okay,” she whispered.
I glanced at her sideways. Kat didn’t look okay. Not even a little. She didn’t sound okay. We sped onto the highway heading east. “Are you really okay, though?” I asked, my hands tightening on the steering wheel.
She nodded instead of speaking.
“Onyx,” I grunted out. “It’s been years since I saw it.”
“Did you know it would do that?” Her voice was raspy as if…as if she’d spent all day screaming, and that was mostly likely what had happened.
“Back when we were being assimilated, I’d seen it used on those who were causing problems, but I was young. I should’ve recognized it, though, when I first saw it. I just never saw it in that capacity—on bars and chains. And I didn’t know it would affect you the same way.”
“It…” She trailed off, and I focused on the road.
I had to focus, because I really wanted to lose my shit. I remembered how painful it looked for those it was used on during assimilation. Onyx was said to be one of the most painful things we could be exposed to, worse than even an Arum feeding. Those Luxen had screamed like their skin was being hacked away from their muscle and bone with a butter knife.
Knowing that Kat had suffered that for hours filled me with helpless rage. My ass had been sitting in class while she was being tortured. Freaking tortured.
“Kat?”
She sat up in the seat. “Blake and I aren’t very different.”
“What?” I looked at her sharply. “You’re nothing like that son—”
“No. I am.” She twisted toward me. “He did everything to protect Chris. He betrayed people. He lied. He killed. And I get that now. Doesn’t make anything he did okay, but I get that now. I…I would do anything to protect you.”
I stared at her for long as I could without driving off the road, and then I looked back at the road. I knew what she was saying. She would kill to protect me. She would do anything to keep me safe. The same as Blake, but no…it wasn’t the same.
Reaching over, I threaded my fingers through hers and brought our joined hands to my thigh.
“You’re still nothing like him, because in the end, you wouldn’t hurt someone who was innocent. You’d make the right call.”
She didn’t respond to that. Several moments passed. “About Will? What…what do you think will happen with him?”
I growled. “God, I do want to hunt him down, but here’s the deal. Worst-case scenario, he’s pissed when the mutation fades, and he comes back after us. If so, I’ll take care of him.”
Her brows arched. “And you think there was no way the mutation stuck?”
“Not if Matthew is right. I mean, I wanted to do it to get you out of there, but it wasn’t this true and deep want. He nicked an artery, but he wasn’t dying.” I sent her a look. “I know what you’re thinking. That if it did, we’re connected to him.”
“Yeah,” she replied.
“There’s nothing we can do about that now but wait and see.”
“Thank you.” She cleared her throat, but it did nothing to make her voice sound stronger. “Thank you for getting me out of there.”
I squeezed her hand. We were near Street of Hopes, the address provided. “Are you okay?”
She smiled weakly. “Yeah, I’m okay. Don’t worry about me right now. Everything…”
“Everything is about to change.” Shit. I couldn’t even wrap my head around what was about to happen. My brother. God, he was alive and we were about to be reunited. I pulled along the back of the plaza, hitting the brakes. Pulling my hand free, I killed the engine and took a deep breath as I glanced at the clock in the dashboard. We had five minutes.
Kat unclicked the seat belt. “Let’s do this.”
I blinked. “You don’t have to come in with me. I know…you’re tired.”
A steely look of determination filled her heather-gray eyes as she opened the door and stepped out of the SUV, standing in the damn cold parking lot with her bare feet. I was beside her in a second, taking her hand. She didn’t need to do this. She could stay in the SUV where it was warm and she could rest, but she was doing this for me.
“Thank you,” I said.
Kat smiled, and then we started into the building, and I couldn’t help but notice the onyx embedded in the bricks. The door was unlocked, and once inside, the alarm system shone green.
Hell, how many people did Will Michaels have to pay off to make this happen? How did he get that kind of money?
The lobby looked like any office building lobby. Half-circle desk, fake plants, and cheap tile floors. There was a door leading to a stairwell that had been conveniently left open. Kat squeezed my hand, and I felt sort of nauseous as I stared at the door.
Squaring my shoulders, we went for it, climbing the steps as fast as we could. At the top landing, there was a closed door. Above it, there was more onyx. I let go of her hand and wrapped my fingers around the handle, a slight tremor running up my arm.
I pushed open the door.
The room was dark, lit only by the moonlight streaming in through one window. There were a couple of folding chairs propped against the wall, a TV in the corner, and a large kennel-like cage in the middle of the room, outfitted with the same kind of manacles that had hung from Kat’s.
I stepped into the room slowly, my hands falling to my sides. Heat rolled off my body as I stared at the cage.
The empty cage.
Opening my mouth, I shook my head wordlessly as all the hope and excitement swan-dived out of an airplane.
“Daemon,” Kat croaked.
I stalked toward the cage, stood there a moment, and then knelt, pressing my forehead against my hand. A shudder racked my body. Had Dawson ever been here? Was it all a fucking lie? I didn’t know. All that mattered was my brother was still…missing.
Kat’s hand landed on my back, and my muscles tensed. “He…he lied to me,” I said, voice ragged. “He lied to us.”
Pain ripped into me, tearing up old wounds that had never healed. This was never going to be over. That’s how it felt. I was going to go on for the rest of my life chasing a ghost.
Kneeling beside me, Kat pressed against my back. Her arms wrapped around my waist. I placed my hands on her arms and closed my eyes, letting her presence warm me. If she hadn’t been here…
I rose swiftly, catching Kat off guard. She started to fall backward, but I spun around, catching her before she hit the floor. My name was a rough rasp when she spoke. “Sorry,” I said. “We…we need to get out of here.”
She nodded, stepping back. “I…I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not your fault. You had nothing to do with this. He tricked us. He lied.”
Taking her hand, I led her back to the car. On the way back to the house, I could feel Kat staring at me. I wanted to say something to reassure her. God knows she could use it, too, at this moment, but my jaw was locked shut. All I could focus on was getting us both back to the houses.
Then Kat reached between us, placing her hand on my arm. I glanced at her briefly but said nothing. I don’t think she would ever know how much that meant to me. Her hand stayed there even though she was close to dozing off.
I pulled into my driveway, letting the SUV idle for a moment as I saw Matthew’s car behind Dee’s. Kat blinked several times. “Did you call them, tell them what happened to…me?”
“They wanted to help find you, but I had them stay here in case…” No point in finishing that part of the sentence, but the next needed to be said as I turned off the engine. “If the mutation doesn’t hold, I will find Will and I’m going to kill him.”
Kat didn’t look all that surprised by the statement as I leaned over the center console and kissed her. Her heart immediately sped up, and I smiled against her mouth, loving how she responded to the softest of touches.
Pulling away, I glanced over at my house. Seeing Dee right now was going to be hard. A part of me had hoped bringing Dawson home would elevate some of her pain. I shuddered. “I can’t…I can’t face Dee right now.”
“But won’t she worry?”
“I’ll text her as soon as you’re settled.”
“Okay. You can stay with me.”
A wry grin tugged at my lips. “I’ll get out before your mom comes home. Swear.”
Kat smiled at that. I got out of the SUV and jogged around to her side. Opening her door, I reached in for her. “What are you doing?” she asked.
I arched a brow. “You haven’t had shoes on this entire time, so no more walking.”
She opened her mouth as if she wanted to argue, but snapped it closed. I grinned as she scooted to the edge of the seat.
The front door to my house swung open, slamming against the clapboard like a gunshot. I spun around, my hands forming into fists as I expected the DOD to come rushing out.
But it was Dee.
Strands of dark curly hair streamed behind her. Tears glistened from her eyes and coursed down her cheeks. My heart started to sink even further, but she…she was laughing and she was smiling.
What the hell? Was Dee medicated? Not that there was anything wrong with that, but I had a feeling pills wouldn’t work on us. Maybe pot?
Kat slipped out of the car behind me, and I started to turn around to stop her. She was not going to walk barefoot on snow, but the door opened again behind Dee, and…
