Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 72126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 361(@200wpm)___ 289(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
“You gotta be a man to fight a man.”
Enraged, I leaned back and kicked Dylan in balls, and I kicked him hard. He dropped to the ground and bellowed, “You fucking cunt!”
He gasped and spat, and I knew this was my chance to get away. I rolled to my side and then to my knees. Once I was on my feet, I turned and whispered, “We gotta go.”
The words had barely left my mouth when I heard the click of his pistol. I turned and found the barrel aimed straight at my head. “You’re not going anywhere without me.”
Damn.
Casey
“You were really brave tonight.”
“I didn’t feel brave.” We were lying in Toby’s bed, and he was curled up next to me, toying with the sling that protected his broken wrist. “I was really scared.”
“I know, sweetie. I was, too.”
Toby’s eyes filled with tears, and he sniffled, trying to hold it all in. "I thought… I thought he was gonna hurt you… like he did before."
“I’m so sorry.”
Toby was so good and sweet, and it gutted me to see his arm in that sling. It would be a constant reminder that he’d been hurt again, and I hadn’t been able to stop it. My stomach twisted as the memory played in my head – Dylan’s smug grin, his twisted words, and the sound of Toby’s scream as the bone snapped. It was a memory that neither of us would soon forget.
He looked up at me with those big, hazel eyes—now a little glazed from the painkillers—and asked, “Why couldn’t he just leave us alone?”
“He was sick, sweetie. He wasn’t right in the head, and I should’ve seen that from the beginning.”
“I thought he was cool, too.”
“He was a really great actor.” I reached up and brushed a strand of hair from his face as I added, “But we don’t have to worry about him anymore.”
“Yeah, ‘cause Sutton smoked him.”
“Toby.”
“Well, he did.” Toby looked up at me as he said, “He made sure he couldn’t hurt us again.”
I thought back to the moment when Dylan burst through Toby’s bedroom door. I’d seen him angry many times before, and it had always terrified me. But this time felt different. This time that look in his eyes was more determined, like there was only one way this was going to end—it was going to be us or him. And I feared it was going to be us.
That feeling remained until Sutton came.
The second I saw his handsome face, I knew our nightmare would soon be over, and thank God, I wasn’t wrong. Sutton knocked down the front door and stormed into the living room so quickly that he caught Dylan off guard. As he spun around to face Sutton, Dylan’s gun left my temple, and before he could make a move, Sutton shot him.
As Dylan collapsed on the floor, Sutton rushed over to me and grabbed me in a tight embrace. He unlocked my handcuffs, and I rushed to gather Toby in my arms. I could see that his wrist was hurt, but he was alive. He was okay, and I’d never been more relieved.
It was over.
And because of Sutton, we’d survived.
I looked down at Toby and smiled, “Yes, he made sure he’d never hurt us again, but it had to be hard for you to see that.”
“I didn’t see it. I was too scared to watch,” he admitted. “I just heard it, and I was glad he got him.”
“I’m glad he got him, too, but...”
“I’m okay, Momma. I’m not gonna be all messed up in the head ‘cause Sutton shot him,” Toby assured me. “Now, I ain’t gotta worry about Dylan coming for us.”
“No, you don’t, but if you ever want to talk about things...”
“I know.” He eased down on his pillow and closed his eyes. “I love you, Momma.”
“I love you too, sweet boy.”
I continued to play with his hair until he drifted off to sleep. I stayed with him for over an hour, making sure that he was sleeping soundly before I got up and headed to Sutton’s room. When I walked in, he was in bed, looking at his phone. As soon as he saw me, he put it on the bedside table and asked, “How’s he doing?”
“Better than you’d think.”
“Ah, he’s a smart kid. I got a feeling that he’s gonna be just fine.”
“I certainly hope so.”
I crawled up next to him, and as I settled into the crook of his arm, the fear, pain, and helplessness I’d been carrying just melted away. He wrapped his arm around me, solid and strong, and I could feel the steady beat of his heart under my cheek. It was like all those shattered pieces inside me were starting to stitch themselves back together. For the first time, I felt safe, truly safe, and with him here, holding me like I was the most precious thing in the world, I almost believed that everything was going to be okay.