Page 100 of In Hiding

In the light, confusion filled her eyes before clearing. Jake took his hand away, lamenting the loss of contact as he sat back.

“You’re here?”

I never left. He gave a nod. “I am.”

Her palm caressed the side of his face as she sat up. “Tell me this isn’t a dream.”

Forgetting himself, he pressed his lips to hers. Her warmth chased away the cold and when her lips moved against his, Jake’s heart soared. “You’re not dreaming, Sarah. This is real. You need to get up and get dressed. Go get William and Erik.”

She scrambled off the bed, her silk pajamas shiny. Satisfied she understood what was needed, Jake moved to the door. He hesitated, giving himself another ten seconds to watch over her, then left.

~

The instant Sarah looked up, he was gone, and her heart sank but there was no time to mull over it.

He’s coming.

A shudder passed through her as she pulled on her sneakers, almost knocking her off balance. She could hear Jake’s words echoing through her head as she grabbed a jacket and pulled open the bedroom door. On the landing, the unmistakable figure of her brother moved through the semi-darkness. There really was no guessing who that wrapped ponytail belonged to. Moonlight shone on the bald sides of his scalp as he made his way to William’s door.

He’s coming.

Sarah zipped her coat and joined Erik as he opened the door. Dressed, William met them with little more than whispered words.

“Where did Jake go?”

William smiled. “I knew he wouldn’t leave us.”

Erik put a hand on her arm. “Where is he, Sarah?”

He’s coming.

She shook her head, dreading where he might have gone. “Ryan’s here.”

“I know, but you both stay with me. Let Jake and the others handle it.”

Her heart skipped a beat. “The others?”

He nodded as a loud crash sounded on the ground floor.

He’s here.

Erik moved them away from the staircase, toward her office. The security alarm rang through the darkness for a brief moment, another crash bringing it to a halt.

“Where are you Kat?”

The sound of Ryan’s shout froze her to the spot. An image of the night he attacked flashed through her mind, of his bulk holding her down, the blade streaking through the dim light. Sarah felt her heart trip over itself as it tried to gallop away, while her lungs seized inside her chest, cutting off her air. She grabbed the doorframe to hold herself up.

“Or should I say Sarah?”

He laughed, the sound bouncing off the walls of the still house, the volume inexplicably getting louder as it reverberated up to the second floor. It was a cruel laugh. A hysterical laugh. She’d only ever heard it once before.

“Where the fuck are you, bitch?”

The fury in his voice vibrated through her veins. The past and present collided as the unthinkable had come to pass. He’d found her and he was intent on finishing what he started. If she didn’t do something, he’d hurt those she loved. Sarah stared at William in the semi-dark. Anger lit his eyes and set his jaw like stone. Her little boy became a young man as he pulled his axe from behind his back.

“No,” she growled. “You stay here.”

“I won’t let him hurt you again,” he insisted. “Jake showed me what to do.”

---