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It would have been comical if he didn’t know that the tremble in her lip meant any second now, she was going to crumble.
I just need to apologize. Two simple words.
He got up from the table, a thousand things perched on the edge of his tongue, among them an apology, but they wo
uldn’t come. Instead, he just turned and walked out, cursing himself the whole way home.
* * * *
Hours later, Rylie sat up with a start, groggily glancing around the darkened bedroom. It felt as though she’d just fallen asleep, and after picking up her phone to check the time, she realized it wasn’t far off. It was just after one in the morning, and after Dustin had left, she’d tossed and turned until at least eleven forty-five.
She still couldn’t figure out what was wrong with him. She’d expected calm acceptance, maybe a little giddiness. She’d hoped for disappointment that she was leaving, but not anger. Not treating her like she didn’t matter and he couldn’t wait for her to disappear.
The sound of squealing tires and spraying gravel outside made her jump. Thoughts of Dustin pushed aside, she fled the comfort of the bedroom for the front of the pool house. Sleep still clouded her consciousness, which is why she didn’t notice the window at first. Not until a sharp shard of glass sliced into the bottom of her foot, so deep she was sure it scraped bone.
She screamed and stumbled to the side, gripping the counter as she lifted her foot up off the ground.
“Rylie!” Dustin shouted from outside, just before the motion light flicked on.
How did he get here so fast?
Noticing the shimmering slivers glittering in the light, she hollered, “Don’t come in here! There’s glass everywhere.”
Dustin and Charlie stopped outside the frame of the glass door, which had been obliterated by something.
“What the fuck happened?” Charlie asked.
Dustin stepped inside before Rylie could protest again and she heard the crunch under his feet. Rylie hobbled back to where the light switch was, and once she flipped it, she gasped at the carpet Dustin stood on in his sneakered feet. With the light shining in, it hadn’t looked that bad, but now she could see it everywhere. Whatever had shattered the window had worked like a bomb, projecting glass every which way.
“Are you hurt?” Dustin growled, advancing around the counter toward her.
Wincing at the throb in her foot, she lifted it to get a better look and had to crane her neck to see. A shard of glass stuck out about a quarter of an inch, embedded deep in the tissue of the sole of her foot. Blood oozed around the edges, covering her pad and toes like thick, red paint.
“I stepped on it,” she said faintly, already woozy.
Dustin kneeled and lifted her foot. “Charlie, call the cops. Tell them to send paramedics.”
He grabbed a towel from the counter and gave her a grim look. “This is going to hurt, but just stay still, okay?”
She nodded, closing her eyes, but as he slid the glass out, she screamed. It was so much worse coming out, as if it was ripping apart her tissue, shredding it to pieces.
“I know, honey, I know.” After he set the glass on the counter, he pressed the towel against the bottom of her foot. “I think you’re going to need stiches. That son of a bitch went all the way in.”
She bit her lip as he pressed against the wound. “Did… Did you see what did it? What broke the window?”
“No.” He stood up and lifted her onto the edge of the counter. He tied the towel around her foot. She winced at the pain, but his fingers stroking her forehead as he brushed her hair back from her face made her feel slightly better.
“What were you doing down here?” she asked.
“I heard the tires squealing, and came down to check on you. We’d made it to the bottom of the stairs when I heard you scream.”
“I… I woke up, but I didn’t know why. Not until I came out here.”
Dustin wrapped his arms around her and she hugged him close, burying her face in his neck as the dam of tears broke. She had woken up to a nightmare of fear and pain and she had no idea why. Who would break the glass door?
She was still crying when Charlie came up beside them.
“The cops are on their way, but I found this on the floor. Figured you might want to see it before they do.”
