Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 119476 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 597(@200wpm)___ 478(@250wpm)___ 398(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119476 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 597(@200wpm)___ 478(@250wpm)___ 398(@300wpm)
So, while I want to run, I don't. I creep, gun drawn, eyes peeled, and ready for whatever he may have up his sleeve.
I pause at his truck, taking a quick peek through the windows, but nothing jumps out at me.
In fact, nothing seems amiss at all as the cabin comes into view—that is until I hear Nora's terrified screams bleeding through the walls.
All bets are off now as I flick the safety off and race toward the cabin. “I'm coming, Pip.”
I burst through the front door, only to stop dead in my tracks at the sight before me.
Nora is on her side with her arms tied behind her, soaking wet, and bleeding. Rand is gripping her jaw so tightly I can see his fingers digging into her delicate, already bruised skin as he tries to pull her leggings down.
Hell. Fucking. No.
“Get the fuck away from her!” I shout, cocking the gun and aiming it straight at him.
Nora’s wide, tearful eyes nearly gut me where I stand. She tries desperately to speak, but Rand’s tight hold on her prevents any intelligible words from coming out.
“Well, look who's here,” Rand murmurs, not remotely fazed by my appearance or the weapon pointed directly at his chest. “I was wondering if you'd show up. Nora here—” He yanks her by the hair, hard enough that her whole body slides toward him, her neck bent at an unnatural angle. “She was certain you'd swoop in and save her, but I had my doubts. That's a lot of trouble to go through for a used piece of ass carrying another man's child.”
Nora whimpers, and something inside of me breaks as fury unlike anything I’ve ever felt before sparks inside of me, racing through my veins like liquid fire.
“She may not be worth it to you,” I say quietly, “but she's everything to me.”
He laughs, but it's a dark sound, devoid of any humor. “Good. Then I'll make sure to let you watch while I fuck the life right out of her.”
He shifts their position, maneuvering them so Nora’s battered body blocks any chance I have at a clean shot.
Her pained sobs echo in the small space, and it’s a sound that will haunt me for the rest of my life.
“I will end you,” I vow, flexing the fingers on my left hand before once again steadying the weapon in my right.
One way or another, when we leave here, he will be bleeding out on this floor, but I refuse to risk her to make the shot. So, for now, I just need to keep his focus off of her and on me instead.
“You can try, son.” His patronizing tone sets my teeth on edge, causing my anger to override the fear.
“I'm not your son. I'm not your anything.” I look him up and down before glancing toward Nora. She’s shivering and crying, and her lips are looking a little blue. I hate how fucking helpless I feel. “You disgust me.”
Rand—because he's not my father—sighs, as if he's disappointed in me. “Soft,” he murmurs, shaking his head. “Just like your mother.”
His words hit their mark, striking me square in the chest.
“Leave her out of this.” My focus is split between him and Nora. She’s in bad shape, but I worry if I take my eyes off him for a single second, he’ll take her from me for good.
He laughs, loudly, coldly. “How can I, when she's where it all started?”
Is he saying what I think he is?
“Meaning...”
“I’ll never forget the first time I saw her.” He sighs wistfully, finally releasing his tight hold on Nora’s hair.
Her entire body goes lax, save for her shoulders, which shake as she cries.
In this moment, everything about him is completely at odds with the actual hell playing out before me. He’s walking down memory lane while simultaneously laying waste to everything I love.
“All I could think about was how pretty she'd look with my hands 'round her neck and her eyes rolled back in her head. She was the start of everything... my genesis. She showed me who I really am and led me down a path I could've never imagined.”
He shakes his head, as if clearing away the cobwebs, bringing his focus back to me. “Made a lot of mistakes with her, but I fine-tuned my process before Grace.”
A heart-wrenching sob slips past Nora’s trembling lips, causing Rand to flick his eyes toward her, an evil smirk curling his lips as he clocks her reaction.
I don't let his words get to me, at least not outwardly. Outrage is exactly what he’s looking for, and I refuse to give him the satisfaction.
“You’re telling me you killed my mom, and Nora’s?” My voice is calm, despite the inferno of rage and regret warring inside of me, burning every decent memory of the man in front of me to ash.