Page 81 of Possession

Chapter Forty-Nine

Rafael

My phone rings out through the car speaker system, and my lip twitches with a happiness that recently seems to exude from me when I see “Little Doll” flash on my console, and I hit answer.

“Hey, I won’t be long. I’m a few minutes out. I want you in bed waiting for me, do you hear?”

The line is silent.

I wait a minute for a response. “Ellie?”

A strange creeping sensation washes over me, but I try to shake it off, knowing I’m being ridiculous. I only left for a few fucking hours, because my brother was bleating like a fucking girl that he needed “him” time.

“Ellie, are you there?”

Maybe the connection is poor? My finger hovers to end the call and attempt to call her back, but then a small grunt sets the hairs on the back of my neck on edge.

“Papa.”

“Oliver? Put Mommy on the phone.”

Sagging back into the seat, I breathe a sigh of relief as I drag a hand through my hair. “Give the phone to Mommy, Oliver.”

“N-no.”

Hudson delivers a soft mewl and something doesn’t feel right. “No, Papa. Bad mommy.”

His words are clear, and every one of them sends an electrical current through my body, an awareness that my family is in danger. I don’t hesitate in pressing the emergency button beneath the steering wheel. It will alert Kai and Rocco to my location.

“What do you mean bad mommy, Oliver?”

I press my foot on the accelerator.

“Hurt me.”

“She hurt you? Who hurt you, little man?”

“Bad mommy.” The sound of Hudson whimpering sets my teeth on edge. “Huds is okay.” Oliver attempts to reassure me.

“Where are you, little man?”

“Clo-closet.”

Oh Jesus, he’s in the closet. Just what the hell is fucking happening? I can barely see straight, my pulse racing so fast my vision blurs as my mind fights with me to keep a level head. “Is Hudson with you?”

“Yes, Papa. I good big brother.”

A lump lodges in my throat at my little man’s words.

Turning into the estate, I race toward the gatehouse, seeing nothing out of the ordinary as I scan the estate.

“Hudson is okay? That’s good, Oliver. Is Mommy with you?”

“Nnn-no. Bad mommy.”

My eyebrows furrow. “Bad mommy?”

“Hurt me.” A volatile fury surges inside me, sending my vision red as I slam the brakes on outside the house. “Papa’s coming, Oliver!” I shout out as I slam the SUV door behind me. Then I run up the steps and swing open the door; the silence of our recently bustling household is an unhealthy quiet. I withdraw my gun from behind my back and move toward the kitchen. Knowing how much time Ellie spends in here with Oliver, it’s the first place I always try before the bedroom.

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