Page 43 of Redeem
We peel out of the dark parking lot, and I interlace my hand with Keegan's.
"How are you feeling about going on the run?" he asks, rubbing his thumb against my skin.
"Honestly, I have no idea. Part of me is sad about walking away from my only friends. Then the other part of me just wants to be wherever you all are, together," I reply, looking out the window into the dark fields.
"I'm sorry for pulling you into all of this. I just want to keep Lily safe." Keegan sighs and I turn to face him.
"Don't ever apologize for that. I want to keep her protected too. She deserves a better life than we've all had," I say, squeezing his hand.
"I just hope it's not too late, and we don't fuck up this whole parenting thing," he replies, turning onto his street.
"We won't. We might all be broken, but we'll always do what's best for Lily."
"Fucking love you," Keegan says, pulling in front of his house.
"I love you too."
I follow Keegan inside. He pushes open the door, taking a few steps, then stops. I smack into his back, groaning. Rubbing my nose, I peer around him and suck in a deep breath. The house is a mess. Furniture is upside down, and pieces of glass are scattered all over the floor.
Keegan tries to hold me back, but I stand by his side.
"What the hell happened here?" Emilio asks, coming in with Arrow.
Keegan opens his mouth to reply before a loud crash echoes through the house.
"Fuck, he's home," Keegan curses and my stomach sinks.
Keegan's father storms out of Lily’s bedroom, holding his mother by her hair with a knife to her throat.
CHAPTER30
KEEGAN
The house is a fucking war zone, and I'm instantly on high alert. He's home. Fucking hell. This wasn't supposed to happen. He should be at work. We were supposed to go get my shit, then leave.
I stand in front of Addie, trying to protect her, but she steps toward me, coming to stand by my side.
"What the hell happened here?" Emilio asks, storming in with Arrow.
I open my mouth to reply before a loud crash echoes through the house.
"Fuck, he's home," I curse, reaching for my gun.
My fingers shake as I aim it toward Lily's room, where the noise is coming from. The last time I held a gun, I killed someone. Sweat forms, dripping down my head.
My father storms out of Lily’s bedroom, holding my mother by her hair with a knife resting against her throat. She looks at me with tear-filled, red eyes. Her feet stumble as he drags her. She's drunk, which is just icing on the fucking cake. As much as I loathe her, I don't want her to die. My father, on the other hand, can rot in hell.
"Where the hell is she?" my father yells, gripping more of her hair. My mother screams, tears falling down her cheeks.
"Lily is never coming back," I say, staring him down.
I feel Arrow and Emilio come up beside me, and my hands stop trembling.
"You're so fucking dead. Son or not, you have no right to take her from me. You've got thirty minutes to bring her back or your mother dies," he snaps, pressing the knife farther into her neck. Little droplets of blood drip down her throat.
She looks at me, pleading for me to help her, to protect her and I want to.
Ever so slowly, I raise my hands, lowering my gun to the floor.
