Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 116708 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 116708 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 584(@200wpm)___ 467(@250wpm)___ 389(@300wpm)
And why I didn’t take her to school each morning anymore?
Or read her bedtime stories? Or kiss her boo boos? Or…or…anything?
“I don’t know, baby. Maybe we can go back to The Grille soon.”
Her chubby cheeks dimpled as she smiled. The twinkle in her eyes was so full of joy, it illuminated the darkness inside my soul. In that moment, with that vision of her etched on my eyelids for the rest of eternity, I could have died a happy man.
Death had other plans.
Suddenly, a sharp, deafening crack tore through the air. Adrenaline exploded in my system as I recognized the gunfire immediately.
“Get down!” I shouted, diving over Kaitlyn and knocking over the table in the process. I was careful to protect her head as we hit the floor, my body covering her completely.
Chaos erupted around us. Screams echoed from every direction as people ran, a stampede of panicked feet, trying to make their escape.
My heart pounded as the boom of bullets continued, each shot bleeding into the last.
I lifted my head a fraction, searching for the source of the madness, but all I saw was Allen, still sitting in his chair, slouched over, a gaping hole in his head.
My stomach rolled, newfound panic detonating inside me. What the fuck was happening? How was I suddenly in a war zone? And in the nightmare of all nightmares, why was Kaitlyn with me?
I fought my trembling body to stay in the present.
Before I’d agreed to come, I’d mapped out the exits, and I sat so I faced the door—safety measures I’d insisted on. I’d thought that I’d prepared for the worst, and somehow, this was more horrifying than I ever could have imagined.
“Stay down, baby,” I whispered, scanning the area, assessing our options. I caught sight of Daniel first. He was thankfully hidden behind a tall concrete pillar, seemingly unharmed.
I finally spotted the shooter near the main doors of the food court. A rifle hung over his chest, at least a dozen magazines clipped to his belt. But nothing was as terrifying as when I realized he was wrapping a chain around the doors—locking us in.
A new level of panic detonated inside me. I had to get her out of there. There had to be another way. It was a fucking mall; he couldn’t have chained all the exits.
More gunfire rang through the air, screams preceding the sound of bodies hitting the floor. My pulse spiked, desperation fueling my adrenaline. With Kaitlyn still hidden beneath me, I glanced over my shoulder, spotting the service hallway a few yards away. It was partially hidden behind a cardboard cutout of a baseball player advertising his upcoming mall appearance. There was a door at the end of the long corridor, one that would have been easily missed by most.
It was my chance.
My only chance.
Utterly still, I watched as the shooter paced a path around the food court. I waited for a lull in the gunfire, every second stretching into an eternity. When I saw him stop to reload, his back to us at the far end of the food court, I decided to make a break for it. I’d only have a few seconds to get her to safety, but it was now or never.
“Baby, I need you to hold onto daddy’s neck, okay?” I whispered. “I’m going to get you out of here. Just keep your eyes closed. I’ve got you.”
Pushing myself up onto my elbows, I started to scoop her off the floor, ready to run for both of our lives. “Hang on,” I ordered, but when she didn’t cling to my neck, I looked down, getting my first look at her since the bullets had sounded.
It was only a second of my twenty-four years on Earth.
One blink. One heartbeat.
But I could have lived a thousand lifetimes and the vision of my baby girl, bloody and lifeless, would still be carved into the marrow of my bones.
“No,” I hissed, frantically patting her down, trying to find the source of blood pooling around her. “Kaitlyn, come on. Stay with me.” With the danger taking a back seat to my fears, I sat up, checking her pulse. Finding none, I immediately started CPR.
“Truett, get down,” Daniel whispered from somewhere nearby.
No. I could save her. I could still save her.
Tears poured from my eyes as I started chest compressions, begging any and every God in the universe to bring her back to me. As the spray of bullets ricocheted around us, I feared she’d be hit again, so I pulled her toward an overturned table, a worthless shield in a worthless fight.
Allen had once explained to me that, when a brain experiences trauma, it reroutes what it’s seeing in order to protect itself. And as I stared at my baby girl, my mind started to close in on me, dragging her from my clutches even as I fought to stay in the present.