“Watch out!” Sadie screams. My head jerks to the side just in time to see Tina standing there, hand holding the knife as the other arm hangs limply at her side.
“Don’t make me do it!” Tina screams. “I’ll kill you too! I don’t want to, but I will!”
My lip curls into a cruel smile. “You're not going to kill me.” I laugh. “Because you're nothing but a pathetic, heartless bitch.” I take a step towards her, my heart pounding in my chest as adrenaline courses through my veins. She takes a step back, looking like a scared cornered animal. Good, she should be fucking scared because when I get my hands on her, I’m going to make it fucking hurt.
“Stop!” she sobs. “Why are you being like this? Why are you throwing everything away for that whore!?”
A booming laugh tumbles free. “When are you going to see it, Tina? The only whore here is you? We were never going to be anything. I could never love you. Never want you. Because you're an ugly person on the inside, Tina. A poisonous cancer that needs to be taken out.”
Her upper lip peels back. “If I can’t have you, then no one will!” she screams before launching forward. Sadie screams my name, but I try to ignore her as I jump to the side, making Tina stumble and fall to the ground. She scrambles to her feet, knife still in hand, but it gives me enough time to grab a piece of wood from the ground.
When she goes to attack me again with a battle cry, I hit her hard with the board. She lets out a cry of pain before stumbling backwards.
Breathing heavily, I stand there and watch it all play out.
The look of pure fear on her face as she drops the knife, her arms flailing as she tries to catch herself on something. But there’s nothing. Nothing to catch her from falling backwards through the open window.
Her screams ring loud in the night air, followed by a sickening thud. And then everything is silent.
I take a few steps over to the window and peer down. Tina lies there, her body in all the wrong angles, lips parted, vacant eyes staring up at the sky.
“Good fucking riddance.” I spit down towards her body.
“Is...is she dead?” Sadie’s soft voice asks as she joins me at my side.
Pulling her away from the window, I wrap her up in a tight embrace, only then does the fear leave my body. “Yeah, baby,” I murmur, burying my face into the top of her head. “She’s gone.”
Sadie buries her face into my chest and bursts into tears.
I’ve never felt more like a failure than I do right now. “I’m so fucking sorry, baby.” I hold her tight, my own emotions threatening to get the better of me. “I should have been here. Fuck.” My fingers tangle in her hair as I breathe her in.
“I thought I was going to die,” she croaks out, and my whole fucking world crumbles.
“I’m so sorry. I’m so fucking sorry.” I say it over and over again. But no matter what I say, it will never take this feeling away.
The fact is, if I hadn’t gotten to her in time, she would have been dead. And it would have been all my fault.
Sadie
IN AND OUT, I BREATHEhis scent in, reminding myself that I’m okay. I’m safe. She didn’t hurt me. I’m not dead.
Still, it doesn’t stop my body from trembling as I shake in Preston’s arms.
He saved me.
“Sadie!” Collin’s voice booms from somewhere below.
“Up here!” Preston shouts.
A few seconds later, footsteps pound their way up the stairs and into the room.
“Fuck, Pretty Girl. Thank god you're okay.” Grayson rushes over and pulls me from Preston’s arms. I wrap my arms around him and hold him tightly, not caring which one of my men is holding me, as long as I’m safe in one of their arms.
“Sunshine,” Collin breathes, stepping behind Grayson, lowering his face to bury it in my neck. “Thank fuck you’re okay.”
“What happened?” Declan asks, voice panicked and confused. “Collin called me, demanded I get to the tower, then hung up.”
“It was Tina.” Preston growls, the vibration rumbling through his chest.
