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Saff's eyes flicked to her. She still hadn't spoken a word to them since they'd returned with the news about Carter.
Maddie was quiet for a moment before muttering, "It hurts.”
James frowned, walking to her bedside. Then he looked up, meeting Saff's gaze. "How long does she need to stay here?"
A slight nagging anxiety entered her stomach. Maddie didn't need to stay there, not really. But the thought of her going back out there and Saff not being there in case something were to happen made her want to keep Maddie there with her. At least for a little longer, until she was sure no one would come back to hurt her.
"She doesn't need to stay," Saff replied quietly as she approached the bed. Maddie's head cocked toward her. "But the burns need to be taken care of properly. The ones that had debris embedded in them will need to be cleaned again soon."
James released a long breath, but she couldn't decipher which emotion lay behind it. He turned his head back slightly toward Erin and Josh. "I think we should all go back to the house and pack our things."
Erin peered up at him through swollen red eyes. "You think we should leave?"
He loosed another breath. "I'm not sure, but I think we should definitely have our stuff ready to go no matter what, just in case they return."
Maddie slowly turned her body, moving her legs off the bed until her feet touched the ground. Saff watched her face twist in pain as she brought her arm forward to rest in her lap.
“Now?” Maddie asked, her tone entirely void of the strong personality it usually held.
James turned, silently passing the question along to Erin and Josh.
Josh didn’t reply before standing and walking out the front door.
Erin nodded, and James stepped forward to help her to her feet. Unfortunately, crutches weren’t part of the supplies they had, so she’d be forced to walk with assistance anywhere she needed to go.
Saff didn’t want to think about the implications of that going forward if they were to stay and get attacked again. Or even if they were to leave.
James pulled Erin’s arm over his shoulder, bearing half her weight. Then he stopped halfway between Maddie and the front door where Josh had just wandered out of.
He frowned, turning his gaze to Saff. “Can you walk with Maddie back to the house?”
Maddie scoffed. “I don’t need—“
“Yes,” Saff cut in, startled at the eagerness that came through her answer. She shot a quick glance at Maddie, who surprisingly, didn’t argue.
James gave her a small, appreciative smile before looking back at Maddie. “We’ll see you guys there. Then we’ll talk everything over again.”
Still, Maddie didn’t say or do anything as he turned and led Erin out the front door.
Saff waited a few beats before taking a step toward Maddie. She cleared her throat.
“Don’t you fucking dare,” Maddie growled, her voice colder than the icy river they'd once crossed.
Saff froze where she was, watching her closely.
Maddie went quiet for a long moment before she spoke again. And when she did, Saff didn’t recognize any of the girl she’d come to know behind the words.
“They might’ve been the ones that killed him. But as far as I’m concerned, it could’ve just as easily been you that pulled the trigger.”
The words stung even more than Saff expected them to.A slap in the face might’ve been less painful.
Maddie released one hand from her cane and navigated to the front door, stepping past the threshold.
Saff stared at her back as she left the house.
She should leave. Sylvia had already agreed to give her what she needed. She didn’t need to be there any longer.
But before she could make that decision, her legs moved on their own, following Maddie outside.
