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“Sam, I—” Anthony started, but she shut him up with a clipped shake of her head.
Aero didn’t speak; he just looked at her pleadingly. He was bleeding from a wound above his eyebrow, and he wiped at it with the back of his hand, the sting bringing the reality of what had happened into razor-sharp focus.
“Get out,” Sam said in an angry whisper. “Both of you. Out.”
Tears were sliding down her cheeks, and Molly grabbed her hand, holding it tightly.
“Sammy,” Aero said gently.
“No. Go. Out of my house.” Sam pointed a shaking finger at the door. “Go.”
“Come on, Squirt.” Anthony stood and took a step toward her. “We can clean this—”
“No!” Sam shouted, her eyes cold and her tone lethal. “I want you to go.”
Molly stepped around Sam, putting herself between her and the men.
“Both of you leave. I’ll take care of Sam and clean up here,” Molly said, planting her hands on her hips.
Aero and Anthony shared a look, as if daring each other to be the first to leave.
“All right.” Aero eventually relented, needing to obey Sam’s wishes. “Sammy, I’m sorry; please call me later.”
They watched him go, the glass and broken bits of Sam’s home crunching beneath his boots, his heart breaking with every step. At the door, he pulled it open and paused, looking up at Sam once more. “I love you.”
With that, he left the apartment and threw himself into his truck, driving back toward the compound as numbness settled into his bones.
Anthony cleared his throat. “Give me a few minutes to get my stuff together, and I’ll go.”
Molly nodded, not moving an inch, as she watched him pick up a few items from the mess that used to be a coffee table and tuck them into his bag on the couch.
Turning to Sam, Molly tugged her down the hall to the bathroom, shutting and locking the door behind them. She turned on the shower and crouched in front of Sam, who sat on the closed toilet lid.
“What the hell was that about?”
Sam pointed at the bruising on her eye. Molly cocked her head to the side, confused.
“Aero was having a nightmare about a week ago and accidentally elbowed me in the eye. I’ve been covering it up so he doesn’t have to look at it.” Sam sniffled. “I forgot about it this morning, and Anthony lost it when he saw the bruises. He assumed Aero hit me on purpose, so when he came here for breakfast…
Sam trailed off, not able to fight the tears. The fear that welled up inside her during the fight overflowed, sobs escaping. She’d been terrified. For the first time in her life, Anthony was a threat to her, to Aero, to her home, and to her happiness. Aero, too, had frightened her. It was as though he’d become a different man, a blank mask descending over his features that made him seem almost inhuman as he attacked his target.
What if that ever happened to her? What if something triggered him, and he came after her? Deep down inside, Sam didn’t want to believe that was possible. She wanted to think that Aero would never, ever hurt her or anyone, but the shattered remains of her furniture and home decor were evidence of what he was capable of.
As her roommate fell apart, shaking and sobbing, Molly sighed. Wrapping Sam in her arms, she shushed her gently and held her as she cried.
When she’d run out of anguish and tears, Sam sniffled. “Anthony hit me.” Leaning back and tugging her t-shirt over her head, the women saw that the front part of her shoulder was red and a bit swollen. It, too, was going to bruise. The irony wasn’t lost on Sam.
“It was an accident,” Molly said.
“So was this!” Sam cried, pointing at her face.
“They both just lost their heads.” Molly smiled sympathetically.
“Aero’s never gonna let this go,” Sam sighed, her hands shaking as she raked her fingers through her hair.
“Sure he will.”
“No, he’s gonna blame himself. He’ll never come back here. Trust me, I know him,” Sam whimpered, knowing that Aero, wherever he was, was beating himself up and it made her heart hurt. As angry as she was with him, as upset as he made her, and as much fear was settling into her bones, she was still worried about him and what he might do with this new stressor.
