Page 107 of Whispers of Obsession

I choke on my sobs, a mix of relief and fear. What if Sean comes back? What if Slater doesn’t make it in time? I try to get Slater’s attention, but all I can do is move my head around, as my entire body is still restrained.

Slater groans and rolls onto his side. I didn’t imagine the bullet hitting him, his T-shirt is stained with blood. It seems to take a lifetime, his movements pained and slow, as he forces himself to his knees. I can see the effort it takes for him to stand, to put one foot in front of the other. I watch as he looks at me, love and concern in his eyes. He mouths something, but the fear pounding in my ears keeps me from understanding him. He reaches out his hand, trying to touch my face, and I eagerly lean into his touch.

His hands slide behind my head and he unfastens the gag from my mouth. “You have to get away,” he whispers hoarsely, his voice filled with intensity as he grabs a knife from the tray of tools Sean was planning to use on me and starts to cut my bonds free. “He’s going to come back. You have to leave.”

My eyes widen in shock, tears streaming down my face. I shake my head, unable to fathom leaving Slater behind. The bond between us is undeniable, and I can’t imagine a life without him.

But Slater insists, his face contorted with pain and fear. “Please, Cora. I can’t lose you.”

My heart is torn between my love for Slater and my desire to protect him from the danger that looms in the shape of his own damn father. I take a deep breath and nod, swallowing back the tears that threaten to overwhelm me.

“I’ll get help. You need to go to hospital. Do you have your phone on you? Mine’s at the apartment.”

Slater nods again, his eyes never leaving mine. Once I’m untied, he helps me to my feet. I don’t know where my clothesare. I shiver and Slater tries to remove his shirt - I think to give it to me, but I stop him.

“Don’t. Stretching will make your wound worse. I’ll be fine.”

He nods. His breathing is labored, and I’m worried that I’m going to lose him for good if we don’t act fast. “My car…keys…hoodie…here…phone.”

Slater pushes his phone into my hands, but there’s no signal down here in the basement. I bite my lip. I need to get out of this house, to get Slater help, without Sean finding me.

He beat me when he found me in his office, and every bone in my body hurts, but I push that to one side. Surviving is more important. For Slater’s sake.

“Come with me,” I beg, but Slater just shakes his head.

“Too slow.”

“Slater—” I plead, crying once again.

“Go, Cora.” His words are harsh, firm, commanding. My feet stumble to obey him, even as my heart screams at me to stop.

“I love you,” I whisper, before darting up the stairs.

49

SLATER

“Ilove you.” Her final whispered words are all I needed to hear.

As Cora darts up the stairs, I slump against the table where my father had her tied, trying to catch my breath. My body is telling me to rest, to just close my eyes and take a minute, but I know that if I do, I won’t get back up again.

Cora’s chances of making it out of the house past Sean are slim. Which means she needs a distraction.

Gathering all the strength I can muster, I reach for the metal tray of torture equipment my father was planning to use on Cora, items my aunt used on me, and I send it crashing to the ground, hoping the sound will bring my father running.

It doesn’t.

I don’t know what happened upstairs to send him running, but it’s a gift we couldn’t ignore.

I’m banging and crashing, making as much noise as I possibly can, when the gun goes off.

A resounding crack that splits through the air and turns the blood in my veins to ice.

I freeze, my heart pounding in my chest as I realize what it means. It means only one thing: Sean found Cora. And now, there’s no telling how he’ll react.

Footsteps pound upstairs, growing louder and more terrifying with each step. But no one comes down to the basement.

The fear that had been mounting in my chest surges forward, an adrenaline-fueled rush of dread and anger.

---