Page 19 of The Revenge Plan (Forbidden Descendants 1)

I did, and my heart cracked in my chest.

Shoving my hands into my pockets to keep from going to her and touching her again, I shook my head and ground my teeth, wondering how the hell all this had fallen on me. How could I help her? I was not at all the right person to help her.

“We should answer one of her friends,” Izzy spoke up, sounding logical. “One of them should be taking care of her right now. Not us.”

“Yeah, but who do we trust?” I muttered and continued to watch Haven. She was in no position to be thrust at just anyone. “If Nicholl got to them first, who knows what he told them or what they think happened? What if they call him as soon as we call them, and she ends up right back in his hands?”

Because that possibility would happen over my dead body.

When her phone started ringing again, Izzy looked down before brightening. “Oh!” she exclaimed and answered the call before I could stop her.

“Iz!” I hissed. “What the hell—?”

She lifted a hand in my direction, silently commanding me to hush. “Hello?”

Motherfucker. I was going to strangle her.

“Yes, sorry. I’m Izzy. Haven can’t come to the phone right now. She’s—what’s that? Yeah, she’s here now, but she’s—Yes, she’s okay. Physically, I mean, but she’s not really…hmm? Oh, um. No. I haven’t actually met her before. I mean, I knew who she was, of course, but I—we’re at my brother’s apartment. He—”

I ripped the phone from her hand, glaring. “What the fuck are you doing?”

Her eyes were wide but she waved her hands as if trying to soothe me. “No, shh, it’s okay. I think it’s her dad. The screen said home anyway, and—”

“So?” I exploded. “Just because we have a good relationship with our parents, doesn’t mean she does with hers. What if having them know where she is makes things worse for her?”

“I…” Izzy’s mouth stayed open a second longer before she cringed. “I didn’t think of that. Sorry. I just knew I’d want Mom or Dad at a time like this, so I assumed—”

Shaking my head, I looked down at the phone, where the caller had probably just heard everything Izzy and I had said to each other. I could definitely hear someone yelling through the receiver at us.

Great.

Nervously swiping my tongue over my bottom lip, I glanced back at the girl lying on my couch. She was still sleeping peacefully, and I’d do anything to keep it that way. No one was getting to her unless she wanted them.

Closing my eyes, I drew in a deep breath and lifted the phone to my ear. “Hello?”

“Who the fuck is this?” a man growled into my ear. “And where the fuck is my daughter? If she’s not okay or you even laid a hand on her, you worthless piece of shit, I swear, I’ll—”

“She’s fine,” I said cutting him off, except, no, she wasn’t really all that fine, was she? “Um… I mean, she’s…”

Shit. What did I say to this guy?

“Don’t jerk me around, asshole. Where…is…my…daughter?”

“Look,” I said slowly, calmly. “Haven needs someone who will take care of her right now.”

“Well, that’s me,” he growled in a furious rage. “I am her father. So tell me where she is, and I will come get her.”

“I don’t think you understand,” I countered. “I was visiting my sister at her dorm this evening, and when I opened the door to leave, Haven exploded inside, frantic to escape the jackass who was chasing her. She had no idea whose room it was; she just needed a safe place to hide. And though I know my sister and I aren’t the best people for her right now—because we’re basically strangers—I am going to keep providing that safe space she needs until I’m certain someone she trusts and cares for can come claim her.”

“Were you not listening when I said I was her father? Boy, you don’t just keep a man from his only child when he knows something’s wrong. Now tell me where Haven is before I—”

“I don’t know you,” I broke in with a hard, unyielding voice. “All I know is that she is an emotional wreck right now. And she really needs someone who loves her—someone she trusts—to come take care of her.”

“She can trust me. I love that little girl more than I do my own life. I would die for her. And I certainly have no qualms about reaching through this fucking phone and strangling you to death if you don’t tell me where she is.”

“Sir, I don’t want to upset you. I really, honestly hope you are the person she would want right now. But she can’t talk to tell me that at the moment. Before she passed out, she was so distraught she stopped responding to anything my sister or I said to her. So, while she is in that condition, I’m not going to hand her over to just anyone. I don’t care how much DNA you might share with her. Dads can hurt their daughters too, and I am not letting anyone else hurt her tonight.”

“Jesus Christ,” her dad choked out. “Is she really…? She… What happened to her? Do you even know who was chasing her?”

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