Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 136048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136048 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 680(@200wpm)___ 544(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
I freeze in his arms, practically becoming paralyzed as Knight seems to clutch me even tighter, responding to the knock as though it’s the greatest threat to ever come our way.
“It’s after one in the morning,” I whisper as he hastily places me on the ground. “Who the hell would be knocking on our door?”
Knight barely allows me a moment to finish my question before he rushes to the hallway cupboard, dragging me along with him and refusing to let me out of his sight. He reaches into the cupboard, and within a flash, he’s holding a gun firmly in his hand. My eyes widen, realizing far too slowly that this could be something much more than a random house call in the middle of the night.
Another knock sounds at the door, but instead of filling me with concern, it stirs nothing but uneasiness in my chest. A strange whimpering sound immediately follows, and I swallow over the fear in my throat.
Could this be Elias, finally coming to finish what he started? Come to even the score with his brother?
Fuck.
“Check the cameras,” Knight murmurs, digging into his pocket and pressing his phone into my hand as he pulls me along, his arm braced across my body like a human shield while somehow managing to keep me directly behind him.
I scramble for the phone, quickly finding the right app before opening it up and hating how damn long it takes to load, but before I know it, the perfect visual of our front porch appears on the screen, and right there, on her hands and knees, is my mother, covered head to toe in blood.
“MOM!” I cry, racing past Knight and lunging for the door, only he grips my arm and yanks me back.
“Don’t,” he growls. “Could be a trap.”
Fuck.
My whole body shakes, desperate to get out there and figure out what the fuck is going down when Knight fixes me with the kind of stare that keeps me pinned to the floor. “Stay,” he commands as he slowly reaches for the door and twists the handle. He opens it just a fraction, his gun taking the lead as he skillfully sweeps the front porch and surrounding areas, ignoring my bleeding mother at his feet.
The moment he decides the coast is clear, he opens the door wider before reaching down and scooping Mom into his arms, just like I had wanted to only a moment ago. He kicks the door shut with a loud thud a second later.
“Lock it,” he tells me, and I don’t hesitate to dive in behind him to lock the door before going for the deadbolt as well.
Knight gets her down on the ground, and I rush through the house, searching for my medical kit. Once I find it, I hurry back and fall to my knees before her, assessing the damage. My gaze roams over her body as her chest heaves with uneven, shaky breaths. Knight’s already calling for an ambulance, and despite knowing they’re on their way, I get started, doing what little I can from the bag at my feet.
“She’s gotta have a collapsed lung,” I tell Knight as I take in the bruising and the way her chest rises unevenly as she gasps for air. But what gets me the most is the blood dripping down her thighs, seeping through the thin fabric of her pants. Everything inside me breaks. Over these past few days, I’d only just started getting comfortable with the idea of having a baby sister and potentially being able to care for her.
Knight sees what I see, but neither of us mentions it, unsure if Mom has realized it when she reaches for me, gripping my hand. “You were right.” She gasps sharply, her chest struggling to take a proper breath. “He’s back.”
Fuck.
The paramedics arrive within six minutes, kicking Ace’s record of seven minutes and fifty-three seconds. As they tirelessly work to stabilize my mom, I stand back with Knight in absolute shock.
I have so many questions.
Did he beat her? Was it because he found out about the pregnancy, or did she finally get the nerve to ask him about his involvement with me? Did she push him on the double homicide in the morgue or my accusation of sexual assault? Or was he just fucking bored and looking for something to pass the time?
Tears fall from my eyes while Knight holds me, guilt tearing through my chest so violently it almost drops me to my knees. I should have tried harder to protect her. I shouldn’t have taken no for an answer. Now there’s a possibility that she’s lost my baby sister, and she might even lose her life.
The paramedics get her stable enough to transport, and the moment she’s put on the stretcher and wheeled out to the ambulance, I hurry out after her with Knight on my tail, both of us climbing into his truck.