Page 57 of Sparrow

Jaxon. He’s staring straight at me, burning a hole in my eyes, ripping me to shreds with a single gaze.

He found me.

He smiles a sick, maniacal smile, raises his hand, and waves at Cadence when she sees him.

No. Absolutely not. I can’t allow this.

“Cadence,” I say, “want to go inside and see how I can beat your daddy at Skee-Ball?” I need to get her away from him. I need both of them away from Jaxon.

“Yeah!” She runs toward us.

“I just need to run to the restroom really fast. I’ll meet you in there?” I ask Gray, while glancing over his shoulder. Jaxon is gone.

Did I imagine it?

“Okay. We’ll go buy some tokens. We’ll see you inside.” He kisses my cheek.

We part ways, Gray and Cadence up to the main building housing the arcade, and me toward the small bathrooms designated for the putt-putt area.

I glance back over my shoulder to see if they made it inside, and also because I can feel eyes on me. It’s making my skin crawl.

I take a deep breath when I enter the ladies’ room and slip into a stall. I do my business, taking a moment to collect myself. Was I going crazy? Has the stress caused hallucinations? Is that a thing?

Get your shit together, Amelia, and go claim your happiness. Stop letting one asshole consume your mind. You’re safe. You are okay.

I adjust my clothes and turn the lock to open the stall door. As soon as I pull it open, a large, looming figure steps into view, crowding me and forcing me back into the stall.

I try to scream, but he slams his hand over my mouth.

“Shh, baby. No need to scream,” Jaxon growls.

I push my hands into his chest, trying to fight him off, but he’s big—much bigger than me—and he’s overpowering me. I whimper against his hand and tears leave my eyes, trailing down my cheeks. He smirks when he sees them and uses his tongue to lick them away.

I want to vomit.

“I’m going to move my hand now, baby. If you scream, I promise you, you won’t have a throat left to scream from.” He has evil in his eyes. They are dark, ominous, and I know he’s not kidding, so I nod.

He slowly removes his hand, giving me the chance to truly exhale. I can’t catch a breath. I feel like I’ve run a marathon.

“Jaxon, please let me go.”

“Now, why would I do a thing like that? So you can cozy back up to the good old boy you’re fucking?” He wraps his hands around my arms and pins to me to the stall wall.

“Stop. Just stop. What do you want?” I try to remain even and calm, despite the terror and rage brewing inside of me.

“I want you to shut the fuck up and listen.” He leans in closer, slipping his knee between my thighs and pressing upward. I shiver in terror and repulsion.

“No,” I beg.

“You will. You’re mine, Amelia. By law and by rule. I married you. You belong to me. I marked you.”

I stare into his eyes. They are bloodshot and his pupils are dilated. He’s high.

“I’m not. I’m not yours. It’s over. Leave me alone. Please.”

He squeezes my shoulders even harder and then pulls me away from the wall, only to slam me back, hard. Pain shoots down my head and into my neck.

“You ARE!” he roars.

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