Chapter 43
TYRELL
“Tyrell!” someone screams.
I pause in the kitchen, frowning as I go still, trying to figure out where that shouting is coming from.
“What was that?” The girl beside me goes pale as she obviously hears it too. She looks at her friend, who shrugs, then flinches when another scream rents the air.
This one is nameless, just an outright cry of agony or terror. I’m not sure. But I move to investigate. And I’m not the only one doing that.
People start crowding out the hallway, and I keep an eye out for Dani as I go. She disappeared on me when I got caught in that fucking football conversation that had zero value, because in the end they agreed to disagree over who the best player was. Who gives a shit.
As soon as I noticed she was gone, I started looking for her. She said she was going to find drinks, so I headed to the kitchen. When I couldn’t find her there, my stomach sank. I figured we’d probably end up playing a game of “search the party,” and I really didn’t want to miss her.
I was seconds away from stepping into the hallway when I heard that scream.
Another one fills the air, followed by a sobbing wail, and the closer I get to the source, the more this uneasy feeling in my chest starts to grow. Flashbacks to a party three years ago torture me, and as this unrest blooms inside of me… a thought finally hits.
Shit, that’s not Dani, is it?
“Excuse me!” I start pushing people out of my way, straining to get to the bathroom.
“Is she okay?”
“What’s wrong with her?”
“Did that guy try to attack her?”
“He’s passed out cold!”
“Shit, what did she do to him?”
Thankfully, I’m tall enough to see over the bulk of the crowd, and I spot Dani’s curls through the gap.
“Dani!” I shout. “Let me through! Move!”
“Hey!” Wily shouts over top of the chatter. “Move aside! His girl’s in there!”
People quickly do as they’re told, Wily ushering a frightened-looking Satch to the edge of the living room while I bolt through the door.
“Dani!” I kneel in front of her, grabbing her face and moving her to look at me. “Baby, I’m here. It’s okay, I’m here.”
She blinks, her screams drying up as she takes me in. She’s slow to register that it’s me, but after a beat, she sucks in a breath and squeaks my name. “Ty.”
“Yeah, I’m here. Are you okay?”
She’s a shaking mess, of course she’s not okay! Her eyes dart past me to the guy on the floor, her lips trembling as she stares at him.
Grady’s already behind me, checking on the man, who has obviously had too much to drink.
“He’s out cold,” he murmurs. “Hey, buddy! Wake up, man.”
“Is he breathing?” Dani whispers, her voice a breathy mess.
I take in my friend and the prone guy on the floor… and suddenly it hits me like a sledgehammer.
Holy shit.
Atlas.
I whip back around to check on Dani, and I see it in the glazed look on her face. She’s back there, relieving every awful moment of finding Atlas on the bathroom floor and trying to wake him.
Grady manages to rouse a groan from the guy, and I brush my thumbs across her cheeks. “He’s fine. He’s gonna be okay.”
“We still need to get him to a hospital,” Grady murmurs. “Hey, Zander! You out there?”
“Yeah, man.” Zander’s head appears. “What do you need?”
“This guy needs checking out. We either need to call an ambulance or take him to the hospital.”
“Ben’s already calling 9-1-1,” someone shouts from behind Zander, and then a tall guy with shaggy spiral curls appears. I recognize him from the basketball team. “An ambulance is on its way.”
Zander disappears from view to no doubt double-check on that phone call, so I focus back on Dani.
“Hey,” I whisper, rubbing her cheeks again. “Come back to me. It’s okay. No one’s dead. Everything’s fine.”
She lets out a shaky breath, her body shuddering. I need to get her the fuck out of here.
“Come on.” I stand up, taking her hand and pulling her to her feet.
Wrapping my arm securely around her, I try to shield her from view as I walk her out of the party. Bug-eyed stares and whispers follow us, but Wily and Zander soon create a barricade.
“She okay?” a concerned voice asks, and I glance up to see Asher Bensen and Liam Carlisle join the line, walking us out of the party like our personal bodyguards.
“Yeah, she’s gonna be fine,” I answer, hoping with everything I’ve got that it’s true.
As soon as we get outside, our human shield disperses and I walk Dani down to my car, only just remembering Nix.
“We need to let Nix know that we’re leaving.”
“She’s gone already,” Dani rasps. She’s still shaking, so I hold her a little tighter, slowing my pace to match her shuffle.
“What do you mean, she’s gone?” I ask as calmly as I can.
“She left. Ricky’s cheating on her. She saw it, and she bailed.”
“Holy shit.” I blink. “That asshole.”
“That’s what I said.” Dani closes her eyes. “And then I slapped him. Twice.”
“Really?” I can’t help my instant smile. Squeezing her a little closer, I kiss the top of her head, relieved that she’s starting to talk coherently. She’s coming back. This nightmare can be over, and we can move on. We can put this behind us and—
“I can’t do this.” She jolts to a stop, flicking my arm off her shoulder.
A dark sense of foreboding settles in the pit of my stomach, but I try to shake it off, seeking clarification with a soft “Can’t do what?”
“This.” She points between us.
Fuck. No!
Don’t do this, please, Dani.
Keeping my emotions in check is an effort, but I clamp down the flood of panic that’s threatening to blind me and force myself to say, “I know tonight shook you, but everything’s going to be fine.”
“No, it’s not.” Her voice is wooden, her eyes staring past me like she’s outside of her body or something. “I thought it was you. On that floor. I thought it was you.”
“Me?”
“Yes.” She looks up at me then, her eyes all wide and panicked. “I can’t put myself through this again.”
“It wasn’t me, though. I’m here. I’m safe. I would never drink too much. I’ve never done drugs. Not even one puff of pot. I’m here, baby, and I’m not leaving you.”
“You don’t know that,” she whispers.
“Y-yes, I do,” I try to argue as gently as I can. “I wouldn’t do that to my body.”
“No, you don’t know that you’re not leaving me. You don’t have control!” Her voice rises. “You might not OD, but you could still die. You could get sick or hit by a car or… or shot by some psycho!”
“Dani.” I reach for her, but she flicks me away.
“I can’t,” she sobs, covering her face and speaking into her hands. “I can’t lose someone else. It’s too much. My heart can’t take it!” She ends up screaming the last part, lowering her hands and staring up at me like she’s begging me to get this.
But I can’t. I don’t want to buy into this thinking.
I don’t want to lose her!
“Dani,” I practically beg. “Please don’t do this. I know that life is uncertain and unpredictable, but don’t push me away out of fear. I love you, okay? I love you, and I want to be with you.”
“It doesn’t matter what you want. It doesn’t matter what I want! I can’t… I can’t do this! I’m not ready for a relationship. I thought I was, but I’m not, okay? It’s too much. It’s too soon. I’m not strong enough to take a risk with someone.”
“Please,” I whisper.
She shakes her head, closing her eyes and crossing her arms. “Take me home. Please, just… take me home.”