Eva held up her hand, showing off the sparkling ring. “We don’t need him anymore. I’m on the council now.”
My heart was racing. I couldn’t focus. I felt like a raging wild animal.
I tried to move toward Eva but Leo jerked me back.He laughed in my ear.
“You’re kidding, right?” Leo asked. “I’m not going to let you near her.”
“The love of your life,” I spat. “You’re an idiot if you think it’s possible for her to love anyone.”
“Shut up, Adam,” Eva screamed. The room was silent. She smoothed her clothing as she controlled her breathing. “If only you would have left when you had the chance, none of this would have happened and your pervy dad would still be alive.”
I jerked toward her again but I barely moved against Leo’s tight grip.
“Stop fighting him,” Eva said. “He has a gun. One word and he’ll use it.” She pointed at Leah. “I don’t understand it but she doesn’t want anything to happen to you. So, just stop fighting.”
“You’re going to kill me either way,” I said.
Eva shrugged. “Maybe.”
Leah sniffed hard. She twisted sharply left and right as she growled but she wasn’t able to break free of the guard’s grip.
“Just let us go,” Leah begged. “We’ll leave this stupid place.”
“But you’ll die out there,” Eva said. “Does it really matter how you die? There? Or here?”
“What is wrong with you?” I shouted.
Leah snorted. “She’s a monster.”
Eva wriggled her shoulders as if Leah had complimented her.
“What have you become?” I asked. How had I not seen her for what kind of person she really was?
Eva rolled her eyes. “I became what I needed to in order to survive. Not only that but also to thrive.” She tapped her finger to her chin. “Now, how exactly do I wrap this all up with a nice pretty bow? A jealous son murdering his own father for stealing his girl… the one that got away.”
“You wish,” I said with a gasp. “You won’t get away with this.”
“I think I will,” Eva said biting her lip. She hesitated for a long moment. “Girlfriend walks in, is heartbroken, is going to tell everyone what he did, so he kills her too.”
Eva’s eyes moved from me over to Leah.
“Her first?” the guard holding her asked.
Eva’s eyes narrowed. It looked like she was thinking over her story to make sure there were no holes. She wanted to make sure her position on the council would be unquestioned.
“No!” I shouted. “They’ll see right through it.”
“I don’t think they will,” Eva said turning to the other guard. “Do it.”
There was no way I was going to let Eva do anything to Leah without a fight. I threw my head back, smacking it into Leo’s face.
27
Stevie
I pulled out my new gun as I started to run toward the house. My feet slowed slightly as I turned to check on Shawn and Jake.
“Find somewhere to hide,” I called over my shoulder.
“No,” Shawn said as he closed the gap between us. Apparently, he had found a burst of energy. “I can help.”
“Are you sure?” I asked. “You’ve lost a lot of blood.”
“I’m fine,” Shawn said.
I looked at Jake Quinn. His cheeks were red, which I hoped was from the cold. I couldn’t decide if the water that was beaded up on his face was from the rain or if it was sweat.
“You should find somewhere to hide, Jake,” I said.
He grunted. “You might need the help of my shotgun. I have good aim. I know how to use it.”
They followed me to the front of the house where we slowed our approached and stayed low. I couldn’t tell if anyone was inside the house from where we were.
“We could already be too late,” I muttered wishing I would have kept my mouth shut.
It was quiet all around us except for the storm. If there would have been screams and cries, would we have even heard it?
“Ready?” I asked.
Jake nodded. Shawn looked at his arm and then gave me a nod. I was about to ask him if he was absolutely sure but he jerked his head to the side, indicating I should go.
Our feet moved slowly and soundlessly. My eyes were wide as if it somehow helped me both see and hear.
Still, I couldn’t hear anything except for the falling rain. I had to hope that meant that if anyone was inside, our sounds would be equally muffled.
My back was pressed against the siding as I peeked into the closest window. I could feel Shawn right behind me.
I couldn’t see anything.
I crouched lower, keeping my head below the window as I crept toward the door. Carefully, I took a step closer. The wood below my feet was totally waterlogged, otherwise, it would have likely creaked.
There was a candle glowing on the middle of the coffee table like always. The light flickered, lighting up the faces of the people I’d been living with.
I sucked in a breath. They were all there with their backs against the wall wherever there was space. Shawn grabbed me before I could charge inside.
“What is it?” he asked mostly mouthing the words.
“Everyone is in there. On the floor,” I said.
“Do you see anything else?” he asked.
I shook my head. “Maybe they just came and took our stuff.”
Jake shrugged. Maybe the folks that had been to his place only wanted to take his things. He didn’t stick around to find out, not that I blamed him. There was always the chance they didn’t want to have anything to do with Jake.
“Careful,” Shawn said letting go of my arm.
