"They're gone," Jack said.
David and Doug glanced back at them. "Would you please get her out of here!" Liam grated.
David and Doug began to back up, pushing Sera with them without touching her. Sera's gaze was focused upon Liam's trembling back as she shuffled away. She wanted to go to him, to soothe him, but she knew that he would lose it again, and this time he would not come back.
A sob rose in her throat, but she suppressed it as she tore her gaze from him. She was lucky to have gotten away before; she couldn't risk not being able to get away again. Her breath froze in her lungs as her legs instantly planted themselves. David and Doug bumped into her and instantly jumped away as Liam lifted his head.
"What is that?" Sera cried.
Four sets of red eyes hovered just outside the window. "Shit!" Jack exclaimed.
"Get her out of here!" Liam yelled.
He turned and raced out the door in a blur of motion. "Liam!" Sera screamed and lurched forward. "No!"
Doug grasped her shoulders and pushed her back. "Stay with her!"
Jack grasped her shoulders and released her as if he had been burned. The minute she was free, she bolted forward. David blocked her off as Mike and Jack ran past. "If you go out there you'll only distract him, and get him killed. If you go out there, he will bring you back in here, and he will finish what he started. There will be no stopping it this time."
Sera glanced at David before looking longingly at the door. She knew what those eyes were, knew what they represented, and knew that Liam was out there with them now. She needed to help him. "There's nothing that you can do to help him. Come on, let's get you cleaned up."
She didn't move for a second, and then her shoulders slumped in defeat. She turned and woodenly walked out of the room.
CHAPTER 18
Sera numbly accepted the peroxide, cotton balls, and bandages that David handed to her before he walked over to sit on the other couch. She fumbled with the peroxide, spilling some on her filthy jeans before finally managing to get it on a cotton ball. She winced as she gingerly cleaned the jagged tears in her chest. Her hands trembled as she ripped the plastic wrapping around the large bandage, and taped it to her chest.
She closed her eyes as she took a deep, steadying breath, and tugged anxiously at her torn shirt. "He's all right," David said kindly.
Sera nodded. "I know."
"Can you sense him?"
She frowned. "Sense him?"
"Yes, can you sense him, feel him?"
"No. I just know that he's all right, for now."
"He'll be fine. He's strong."
"Who were they?" she whispered.
"Probably some of Beth's friends. I'm sure that she's created a few others along the way, and that some of them have stayed with her. Or, she's gathered some here to help. We're not all the same Sera. Some of us are brutal killers. They relish in their power, thrill in it. The more you drink, and the more you kill, the stronger you are. They may be here just because Beth promised them a bloodbath."
Sera's hands trembled as she anxiously pulled at her shirt. "Liam, Jack, Mike, and Doug aren't killers. They won't be as strong as them."
"No they're not, but they will be all right. Liam's fury alone will be enough to overpower them. They just want the pleasure of the blood. He wants to keep you safe, that is a far stronger motivator."
"Oh God," she moaned. "He needs to come back."
"He will. They'll drive them away, but he won't follow them. He won't go far from you, not now."
She felt numb as tears slid down her face. She had to believe that David was right. If Liam didn't come back, if he got hurt, if he got killed... Her heart shattered at the thought as she began to tremble.Please God, she prayed silently.Please let him come back to me. "I can't live without him," she whispered.
David clasped his hands together and leaned forward. "No, you probably can't."
Sera choked on a sob as she bowed her head and fiddled with her shirt. "Can they come in here?"
