Total pages in book: 168
Estimated words: 164910 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 825(@200wpm)___ 660(@250wpm)___ 550(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164910 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 825(@200wpm)___ 660(@250wpm)___ 550(@300wpm)
And all at once, everyone whips into action as if in slow motion. I grab Anna-Katherine, pulling her toward the wall as Dallas steps out of his classroom, reaching my father in two strides. He shoves his hand up, the gun spilling from Garrett’s hand, and they struggle, Dallas gripping his neck as he punches him with his other hand.
Grady approaches, trying to kick the weapon out of the way, but just as Dallas plants his knee in my father’s stomach, Garrett slams his palm into Dallas’s gut.
Dallas sucks in a breath, the moment’s hesitation enough for my father to throw him into the wall.
The wind knocked out of him, Dallas struggles to catch his breath, but my father reaches for his weapon, Grady dives in, and my father knocks his head into the cement railing around the second floor.
Grady falls to the floor, knocked out, and my father reaches for his weapon.
I vault up. He’s going to shoot Dallas. “No!” I shout.
Before I can reach him, Anna-Katherine runs and shoves him with her whole body, and I watch, frozen, as he tumbles over the railing.
“Ah!” he cries, the gun spilling to the floor.
He flails, and then…
He’s gone.
Oh, my God.
We hear the thud as he lands, and I rush to the railing, next to my sister, and gaze down. My father lies in the grass, missing the large rock by inches. His legs are bent to the side, and his eyes are closed. He doesn’t move.
I can’t see any blood yet. It’s fifteen—maybe twenty—feet. He might be alive.
Turning, I run for Dallas, dropping to my knees at his side.
“Are you okay?” I scan his body, feeling his arms before I take in his face. “Are you hurt?”
“I’m okay,” he pants. “What happened?”
Dipping in, I kiss him, holding him close and just savoring his scent. That cheap bodywash he uses, but it’s fucking growing on me.
Dallas looks over. “Is he…?”
I follow his gaze, seeing Grady on the ground. Blood trickles from his temple, but his chest rises and falls.
I feel for my phone. We need an ambulance.
But when I turn around, Anna-Katherine is gone.
“Anna-Katherine?” I call.
Dallas climbs to his feet, and we rush to the railing, watching her close in on my father.
She has the pocketknife unsheathed in her hand as she approaches him, and I finally detect his chest moving with every breath. He’s still alive.
For a second, I hesitate. She deserves her revenge, and all of us would be a lot better off if he were dead. I want her to confront him and win.
I almost think I can put myself in Dallas’s shoes that day with his mother. How maybe just letting things happen after so long trying to manage them is the answer.
I don’t want to take chances with Anna-Katherine, though.
I don’t want her heart fractured any more than it already is.
When I turn to run to her, though, Dallas is already racing downstairs.
Bolting after them, I glance back again as she steps up to my father’s side and leans down, my heart catching in my throat as she rears the knife back.
I watch Dallas rush up and take her hand, stopping her. “No,” I hear him gasp.
“Yes.” She squirms in his hold, and I stand close by, letting him help her. “I want it over,” she cries.
He wraps an arm gently around her neck, pulling her head in close. “I know,” he whispers down into her ear. “But not like this.”
He pries the blade out of her hand and turns her around, hugging her.
“Thank you for saving me,” he tells her. “We got you from here.”
Coming in, I stroke her hair with one hand and hold the back of his neck with the other. Our eyes meet, and I just shake my head, almost smiling, I’m so grateful we’re all in one piece. I have half a mind to scold her for coming here alone, but it’s not her fault. She should be able to go anywhere she wants and be safe.
Gazing down at my father, I watch the motion of his chest. I know I should call the ambulance, and if it weren’t for Grady needing medical attention upstairs, I’d probably wait a few extra minutes before calling 911.
Reluctantly, I pull out my phone.
* * *
—
When I enter the Jaeger house hours later, no one is in bed. Dallas, Iron, and Army surround me immediately; Anna-Katherine is making an ice cream sundae with Macon and Krisjen.
“He’ll survive,” I tell the guys. “Broken leg, ribs, concussion, hurt his back pretty bad…”
My father will be in the hospital for a while, but he’s under arrest. Officer Grady suffered a minor head injury, but he didn’t suffer amnesia. Attacking a police officer, not to mention camera footage of my father pulling a gun on him, was more than enough.