Page 13 of The Tower

I frown at him. "That's a little ironic coming from the one who's responsible for it, don't you think?"

"I never meant to harm you," he insists.

"What did you mean to do?" I ask. "Kill my uncle? And my aunt?"

"Just your uncle. He was my target," he responds matter-of-factly as if it was the most natural thing to say. He almost sounds apologetic. "We didn't even know you existed until tonight."

"We?"

He meets my eyes with a subtly shocked face, looking remorseful.

"Who is we?" I probe.

But he just shakes his head.

"You need to rest," he says. "I'll ask them to up your morphine so you can get some sleep."

My eyes follow him with fearful indignation. "No! I want to know! You can't just leave me like this!"

His hand is already resting on the doorknob when he turns back to me. "You're safe here. Trust me."

I let out a dark laugh.

"Trust you? You have to be kidding me," I retort. "I don't even know where I am. This isn't a hospital, is it?"

His response is nothing but a dark look that wanders over to the side of my bed. My eyes follow his, horrified by what I find. My left arm crossed over my chest, kept in place by a splint and bandages all around my shoulder.

And my right wrist is handcuffed to the bed frame.

I'm badly hurt and handcuffed to a bed—and he tells me to trust him?

"Trust?" I utter, a blend of pain and terror lacing my voice. "Like you're trusting me?"

I lift my right hand as much as possible, yanking at the cuff.

"It's for your own safety," he says, turning the doorknob.

"At least tell me your name," I hurry to exclaim before he gets away from me.

He pauses mid-motion, lowering his head before he looks back at me over his shoulder. "Keane."

"Okay, Keane," I repeat. "I'm Libby."

He sighs heavily, and as he opens the door, he adds, "I didn't ask."

I'm too dumbfounded to respond before he leaves the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts and yet another realization.

My life is over.

No matter what lies ahead, my life will never be the same.

And at this very moment, that prospect frightens me just as much as it excites me.

Because I've always known something was lurking in the darkness. Something that was waiting for me.

Something or someone just waiting for the right moment to grab me.

And now it did.

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