Page 108 of Savage Scream

We stare at each other for a bit longer before I wash her hair, revelling in the way she lets me take care of her, and then I step out of the shower to grab her toothbrush, squeezing some toothpaste on it before handing it to her in the shower where a look of relief washes over her, and she proceeds to clean her teeth.

The whole shower experience is intimate in a way I didn’t realise it could be. There’s real trust here, and my mind goes back to that awful moment when Adam Kerr dragged Dee from the house. The moment she turned back and told me she loves me.

Her voice and those three words have bounced around in my head in a continuous loop ever since she said them, desperate for an opportunity to say it back to her, and scared I’d never get the chance.

Soon Dee finishes spitting her toothpaste down the drain, and cups her hand under the spray to take a drink of the hot water. I take her toothbrush and put it back out by the sink before returning to her for one last moment in our little shower bubble.

Using both hands, I brush her wet hair back, keeping it off her face, and the moment our eyes lock, I say the words.

“I love you, too, Dee.”

Her brows shoot up in shock, and I grin, because she looks absolutely adorable being taken off guard like that.

“You said the words, before… You know.”

Slowly, she nods. “Before I was taken.”

“Yes.” I agree, “And I promised myself that when I got you back, I would tell you how I really feel, too.”

Her eyes turn glassy, and she starts trying to swallow like she’s trying to clear a lump in her throat.

“I mean it, Dee.” I brush my thumb over her lower lip. “You own my heart. My mind. My body. My soul. It’s all yours. Always.”

Even as I graze her lip with the pad of my thumb, I feel it quiver under my touch, and a tear pops from one of her chocolate eyes. I quickly brush it away, keeping my gaze locked on hers, and a moment later, she presses up on her toes, her eyes falling to my lips.

I meet her halfway, our lips coming together like they were made to do so, and her small hand grips the back of my neck, holding me to her.

I lose myself completely in that kiss. Our need to show how much we care coming through in each brush of the tongue and stroke of our lips.

It’s hot, heavy, and by the time we break apart, we are both desperate to be free of this hospital to have a quiet place to ourselves where we can worship each other and lose ourselves completely.

38

DEE

The day I’ve been waiting for has finally arrived, and I wish more than anything it was still a lifetime away. Today is my eighteenth birthday. The day I’d originally planned to run away with Travis. To leave this town. To leave Jared.

Since waking up in the hospital on Tuesday, I knew I still had to leave. The only difference between my original plan and now, is that I’m not taking Travis with me.

I spent another two days in the hospital before being released yesterday, and I’ve felt sick to my stomach ever since.

And no. I’m not pregnant. The doctor had apparently given me an injection at Griffin’s order, just in case Adam had raped me, and then on the Angels’ order, a birth control implant was injected under my skin.

I’m not mad about it either, since I needed to try to get something sorted out anyway, but hell, with me leaving, I know I’ll never need it. I’ll never be intimate with anyone but Jared. Not when he owns my soul.

Which is why I’ve felt so sick, knowing I’m going to be leaving him. Leaving Travis. Leaving the Rogans.

I’ve kept my plan to myself, not wanting to upset anyone, but I have to go. I can’t stay here and put these kind people through any more hell than I already have. They deserve better. So much better than the likes of me.

The Rogans, Travis and Jared, all deserve a life untainted by the dangers I’ve brought them, and may potentially bring them in the future. I’m a killer. It’s in my blood, and I can’t stain them with that any longer.

They have all suffered enough because of me, and will carry the effects of my stay here with them for years to come. I’ve already overheard Cynthia talking about the twins having nightmares, and I can only imagine the trauma Cynthia and Will try to face daily after what Adam and his thugs put them through.

When I was finally able to see Travis, it became clear to me that he really didn’t want to leave his foster sister, Cassie. They are close. The way he and I should have been if we were gifted a normal life to grow up together.

Travis has built a life here and has agreed to work with Griffin and the Marx crew once he and Cassie have healed.

I just hope he means being healed on the inside as well as the outside, too.

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