Page 73 of After Midnight

Dominic

Ilay on the cold, concrete, so unforgiving on my sore, tired, and energy-starved body. At least it meant avoiding the disgusting mattress, although I could still smell its stench on me.

Hope for my survival was slipping away with every moment I remained locked away in this chamber. I should probably consider myself fortunate that the idea of death itself didn’t terrify me. Perhaps that came with having lost both my dads so young. Strange as it may sound, the thought of seeing them again?be it in heaven, a different dimension, or whatever theother sidemay be?brought me some level of comfort in my darkest moments.

My other comfort came in knowing my stepmother hadn’t won, not completely. Margarette may claim victory on this battle for my life, but she’d lost the war when she lost control over the girls. No matter what happened, Olivia and Alli were free from our evil stepmother’s clutches for the rest of their lives. If that turned out to be my greatest achievement, at least I had something to be proud of.

Jeffrey and Miss Rita would take care of them, see them well into adulthood, and my inheritance would help in that too. After my first meeting with Mr. Langdon, I’d made sure that’d been set up, and thank God I had.

I let myself think about Dillon, too, and my unrestrained tears dripped steadily onto the concrete floor. I’d already wasted so much time pushing Dillon away, and now I would miss an entire lifetime with him. All the time I wouldn’t get to spend with him in Chicago, wouldn’t get to watch his comedy career reach new heights, wouldn’t get to snuggle into him while watching silly old movies with my sisters. He held the place in my heart where I felt the most regret.

***

I’d drifted into an unsettled sleep, my body numb from hours spent on the cold concrete where I still sat vigil by the door. When it began to creak open, I did have the energy to jump in surprise. Could I muster up the strength to fight Margarette? Highly doubtful, since my body felt weak nearly to the point of paralysis.

Still, I had to try. She’d probably kill me, but at least I would go out fighting.

The light that rushed in temporarily blinded me as my eyes adjusted and I lunged unseeing toward where I imagined Margarette was standing.

“Whoa, hold on there,” a man’s voice said. I still tried to resist, thinking the man one of Margarette’s thugs, but it was no use. When what little energy I had left in me whooshed out in my exertion, I nearly blacked out. I was barely aware of being carried out of the room.They must be going to kill me now.

I came to just enough to see a kind face looking at me. As my eyes focused, I saw the uniform. “You’re a cop?”

He nodded and I was immediately racked with sobs. “I’m not going to die…”

“Shh, son, we’ve got you. You’re safe now,” the officer said quietly before several other people began tending to me.

I blacked out again and woke up in the back of an ambulance. It was moving, and I had IVs poked in my arms.

“Hey,” a soothing voice said, and I saw a woman’s face this time. “You’re very dehydrated, but you’re gonna be fine.”

I nodded in understanding, but I was too tired to think otherwise. My body did feel stronger, but I struggled to keep my eyes open.

The next time I woke up, I was in a bed, and I could hear the unique beeps and bustle of a hospital. The steady rhythm of the heart monitor and murmur of voices just beyond my curtained room were easily the sweetest sounds I’d ever heard.

Somehow, I’d survived this. Outlived my stepmother’s torment.I’ll see my family again…I thought as I fell back asleep.

Chapter thirty-four

Dillon

We didn’t make Alli go to bed that night. It would’ve been cruel, considering we were all waiting on pins and needles for information. I think somehow, we all sensed this would be the end of the ordeal, one way or another.

When the detectives finally brought Miss Rita and Olivia back home, they informed us Dominic had been rescued from the factory. Other than confirming he was indeed alive?thank God?they wouldn’t divulge any other details before they left.

How was it possible that I was more anxious now than I’d been when we didn’t have a clue where Dominic was? Until I saw him for myself, no matter the shape he was in, I couldn’t relax. Given the general sense of restlessness among everyone, I guessed several of us would be pulling an all-nighter together.

Miss Rita put on a movie, one that Papa K had brought, to keep the girls occupied and I joined them on the couch. Around nine, both girls fell asleep watchingThe Lion King. Jeffrey pulled a deck of cards out, and engaged my fathers and Ashton in playing twenty-one, betting with peanuts Miss Rita found for them.

“How are you holding up?” Miss Rita asked quietly as the girls snuggled closer to me, one on each side.

“I’m scared out of my mind and ready to crawl out of my skin, but besides that, yeah, just peachy.”

She chuckled at my sarcasm. “That’s pretty much the same for me. I wish they’d hurry up and call with an update. This waiting is unbearable. I’m tempted to start calling around to hospitals, but I think we’d be stonewalled there too. Active investigation, and all that business.”

Ashton and I carried the girls up the stairs and tucked them into bed. When we came back down, we joined the rest of the group around the table.

Papa K had just dealt another hand of twenty-one when Jeffrey’s phone rang. It startled all of us, and he placed it on speaker when he answered. “Hello?”

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