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Mrs. Taylor’s head jerks up, her attention snapping to the door. She raises her arm, not stopping to see that the little girl is not a threat. My mouth parts, but the shrilling scream tearing up my throat doesn’t stop the horrid sound of two rounds of bullets that fly into the air. Images of her smiling face in my head cloud my vision. The sound of her boisterous giggles ring in my ears. My chest breaks open as I’m brought back to reality. I cry out to her, but it’s no use. The damage is already done. I push off the couch to run to her, but it’s not her who’s laying on the ground. It’s Chase. Two oozing holes soaking through his shirt.
NO!” I stumble to the ground. “Chase!” I cry out when I reach him. “No, no, no, no…” I look up to find Anna crouched in the corner.
“Get away from him.”
“He’s shot! We need to call nine-one-one!” I cry out. Too much blood. It’s coming out too fast. “Oh god.” My hands hang over his wounds. I don’t know what to do. How to make it stop. It’s not going to stop. He’s going to die. “Please, hang on. I’m going to get you help,” I plead. I take a moment and gaze up at Anna. “Are you hurt?” She doesn’t answer. “Are you hurt! Tell me!” I snap, hysterical.
“No. He pushed me out of the way.”
My eyes fall back on Chase. His lids are closed. The color is quickly draining from his face. “Chase, please. Stay with me. Call for help!” I scream at Mrs. Taylor. She just stands there, high out of her mind and partially in shock. I press my shaky hands over his wounds to stop the bleeding, and he lets out a low whimper. I spot a throw pillow and snatch it up, putting it over a bullet wound, forcing his arms to rest on top of it. He groans, and I panic. “Shit. I’m sorry. I have to stop the bleeding—”
“Get away from him.”
“Are you kidding me? He’s hurt—”
“I said get away from him.” My entire body stiffens when she points the gun at Anna, who cowers deeper in the corner. “You’re going to take me into the house or she’s next.”
My voice trembles as I try to talk. “This is not the answer, Mrs. Taylor. I don’t know where the safe is—”
“I know where one is.”
My head whips in Anna’s direction. “No, honey—”
“You heard the little brat. Let’s go.”
No, no, no.
I can’t leave Chase.
She storms up to me, slamming the gun across my cheek. Pain rings in my ear, and I almost tumble over. Heavy tears mixed with blood stream down my face. I hiccup as I plead with her. “I’m not leaving him. Please. He’ll die if we don’t call for help.”
“Have it your—”
“Fine!” My eyes burn, and I retreat. I can barely stand, my legs tremble so bad. “We can’t let him die.”
“Go!” she yells, and I jump, hurrying over to Anna. I’m trying to be brave for her, but when I reach for her, I realize I have blood coating my hands. His blood. Oh god. I start to hyperventilate. When Anna runs into my arms, I pick her up, holding her tight, murmuring that everything is going to be okay even though I feel far from it.
She wraps her arms around me, putting her lips to my ear. “I know how to make her go away.” Her comment confuses me. She continues. “The safe is in my daddy’s room. It has something that will make her go away.” I glance back at Mrs. Taylor. She’s tweaked out of her mind, her body swaying back and forth. She jabs the gun into my back.
“Go. We don’t have all day.”
I turn forward and fight not to throw up. “I don’t understand,” I whisper, walking out of the guesthouse.
“Daddy has the same bad toy. He keeps it by his bed. It’s in a safe. I know the code.”
My eyes widen. “Anna, how do—?”
“Move it. Ask the little brat where the safe is.”
I look down at Anna as she gazes up at me. There’s no way she would know where, let alone how to access Jonathon’s gun. Even if—there has to be another way. Then it hits me. Jonathon walked me through the security system my first day. If anything was ever wrong, I was to enter in the panic code. It’s a silent alarm that will alert the security company. I just need to get into the house and enter in the panic code on the security system and then pray they get here in time to save Chase. Save us all.
“Ask her!” Mrs. Taylor yells, and I nod, looking down at Anna.
“Anna, you don’t have to do—”
She speaks up so Mrs. Taylor can hear. “In Daddy’s room.”
