AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Hallie, wake up,” I tell her, my hand reaching up to cup her face. “Wake up. It’s a dream. You’re safe.” Her eyes fly open, wide in terror. She looks at me and then sits up, her eyes tracking around the room. Relief floods her face when she realizes where she is, and she flops back down on the bed. Her breathing is coming out in small gasps, and she puts her arm over her eyes before bursting into tears.
“Hey,” I soothe. “It’s okay. Don’t cry.”
She shakes her head, her arm still covering her face. “It’s not okay,” she says through her tears. “It’ll never be okay. He’s always going to be in here.” She lifts her arm and jabs her finger against her temple. Her face is wet with tears, and my heart breaks. “Every time I close my eyes, he’s there. Hewillfind me. He’s not going to give up.” A sob catches in her throat, and she rolls onto her side, her back to me. Her whole body wracks with sobs, and I can’t sit and watch anymore. I remove my gun and place it on the nightstand before reaching for her. Rolling her toward me, I wrap my arms around her body, holding her against my chest. She stiffens, but I keep my hold strong.
“Sawyer, what are you doing?”
“Please. I need to hold you.” A few seconds later, her body sags against mine. Her sobs eventually subside, and I bring my lips to her head. I shouldn’t after what she said earlier, but I can’t bear to see her fall apart. I care about her too much. We lie like that for a few more minutes before I pull away slightly, my eyes finding hers.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
She moves away from me a little and props herself up on her elbow. My hand rests on her hip, and I’m aware I could move it now that she’s calmed down, but I don’t.
“I was at the cemetery for Amanda’s funeral. I saw those two guards die again. There wasso… much… blood…” Her eyes close, and I squeeze her hip gently. “On the day of the funeral, Jess and I hid behind a tree. We lay on the ground, holding each other as bullets flew through the air. I was terrified. We both were. I felt so guilty for putting Jess in that position.”
“You didn’t know what was going to happen. No one could have predicted that outcome.”
“I should never have gone. It was stupid. I needed to see he couldn’t hurt me.” She lets out a sarcastic laugh. “Didn’t work out like that, did it?” Her question is rhetorical, but I answer anyway.
“I will never let him hurt you, Hallie.”
She stares at me, and I can see the indecision in her eyes. After a few seconds, her hand reaches up, her fingers cupping my cheek.
“I know,” she whispers. “I trust you.” Her eyes drop to my lips, and I know what she wants. I want it too. As hard as it is, I let her close the distance, needing the decision to be hers. Just as her lips are less than an inch from mine, a loud noise sounds from downstairs.
“What the fuck was that?”
The fear is back on Hallie’s face as I jump up and grab my gun off the nightstand. She sits up, her eyes wide.
“Sawyer,” she says, reaching for my arm. “Don’t go out there. Please.”
“I have to. I need to check what that was.” I move my hand to her face. “It will be okay.” I’m torn between telling Hallie to hide in the bedroom and bringing her with me. When another loud bang comes from downstairs, the scared look on her face makes my decision for me. I can’t leave her alone. She’s already terrified.
“We’re going to go down the stairs slowly. I want you to stay right behind me, okay?” She nods then she slowly climbs off the bed. Her body is shaking, and my heart races as I make for the bedroom door.
“Wait,” Hallie whispers, and I turn to face her. Going up on her tiptoes, she brushes her lips across mine. “I didn’t mean what I said. I don’t want you to go down there not knowing that.”
I brush my fingers gently over her cheek before turning back to the door.
Hallie stays close behind me, her hand gripping the bottom of my T-shirt. Looking over my shoulder, I put my finger to my lips, indicating for her to stay quiet, and she nods in understanding. Opening the bedroom door, I raise my gun as I look up and down the space. Hallie steps closer to me then drops her head onto my back. I know she hates the gun, but right now, I need it. I can hear more noise coming from downstairs as we edge into the hallway. When we reach the top of the stairs, Hallie releases my T-shirt, her fingers going straight back to the material as we hit the bottom step. The stairs open out into the hallway, and we walk silently toward the kitchen. Edging the door open, I twist sharply to the left as the back door swings open. My gun is out in front of me, and Hallie lets out a scream.
“What the fuck, Sawyer! Don’t point that thing at me!” I lower the gun, holstering it at my waist as my sister stands in the doorway.
“Shit, I’m sorry. I thought…” I trail off and spin around to face Hallie. Silent tears are streaming down her cheeks, and I cup her face.
“It’s okay. It’s Brooke.” I drop my forehead to hers as she closes her eyes. “It’s Brooke,” I whisper. Moving my hands from her face, I wrap my arms around her and pull her in close. She clings to me, her hands still pulling on my T-shirt.
“Sawyer, what’s going on?” Brooke asks from behind me.
Concentrating on Hallie, I step back and lift her chin so she’s looking at me. “You okay?” She nods, despite trembling in my arms. “Seems like my sister’s come to visit.”
“Sawyer, what are you doing here?” another voice says. Looking over my shoulder, my mom’s standing in the doorway, my dad behind her. I groan inwardly. Hallie stiffens, and I look back at her, panic and embarrassment etched on her face. The last thing she needs right now is to meet my family.
“Do you need a minute before you meet everyone?” I whisper. She shakes her head, her hands still clinging to my T-shirt. I turn to face my parents and sister patiently waiting for me to answer them.
“Sorry about that, Brooke,” I say sheepishly. “I thought you were… someone else.” She waves her hand and comes into the kitchen, dropping a paper bag on the counter.
“Well, it looks like my idiot brother isn’t going to introduce us,” she says, grinning at me. “So, I’ll do it myself. Hi, I’m Brooke.”
