Chapter 29
TWENTY-NINE
VIOLET
After I returned to my bedroom, the short encounter with Amara played on repeat in my mind. My heart demanded I protect my child, but my conscience and years of training insisted I also help Amara.
God, how was I to do that and still keep Aria’s well-being at heart? After all, my daughter came before anyone and anything else, including myself.
I should seek out a professional who could treat Amara while I made sure my daughter was taken care of.
I couldn’t be objective here, and I didn’t want to be.
All I cared about was my daughter, and that wasn’t fair toward the poor woman who clearly needed help well beyond the clinic where she was stashed away in the past. Yet, she couldn’t remain locked up in this house either.
I opened the windows, the early April air cooling the room and my heated skin. I knew Lykos was next door; I heard his door shut after he walked me to my room and was tempted to go to him, curl myself into his body for comfort.
I was starved for human touch. Hell, I could do with simply talking to someone and sharing my fears, needs, and wants.
But I couldn’t do that to him.
I lay down and slid under the covers, my eyes locked on the ceiling while my mind whirled like a tornado.
Once again, I didn’t reach for my phone to play the recording. At some point, I must have drifted into a light, uneasy sleep, but I woke up suddenly.
My gaze darted around the room, sensing something, but my brain was too hazy and too tired to pinpoint what. I remained still for a second, trying to determine whether I was dreaming, but my heart was already racing. The air felt thick, almost suffocating.
Slowly, through the fog, a smell registered.
Rotten eggs. Sulfur.
Shit, it was gas.
Just in that moment, I heard movement outside my door and I sat up, clutching my sheets.
“Who’s there?” I called, my voice unsteady.
A low laugh—wild and so wrong—traveled through the air.
The smell grew stronger despite the open windows in my bedroom, and an unease crept over me.
I got out of bed without thinking and headed for the door. My hands trembled as I reached for the doorknob and opened it. The smell was much more potent here. No.
Worry for Lykos, Aria, and Dimitros overwhelmed me, extinguishing my fear, and I didn’t think. I ran for the door next to mine and pushed into the room.
The smell of gas hit me harder, filling my lungs and making me dizzy. The window was shut, but Lykos wasn’t there.
My mind whirled in a thousand different directions. Maybe he left. Maybe he was downstairs. Maybe…
No, I couldn’t think of him dead.
I bolted down the hallway, to the opposite side of the house where I knew the children’s bedrooms were.
I opened the first door and found Aria’s golden mane on the pillow. She lay there, so small beneath the covers.
I spotted Lykos sitting in the chair, motionless.
“Lykos! Aria!” I called out, but neither one of them moved.
I stumbled to the window and wrenched it open, the hinges screeching in protest. Cold air flooded the room and I dragged in a deep breath, then another, forcing myself to stay upright, to think.
“Lykos!” I called again, my voice cracking as it echoed uselessly off the walls. “Aria!”
I turned and rushed back to the father of my child, dropping to my knees in front of the chair. I grabbed his shoulders and shook him hard. “Wake up!”
Nothing.
A cold weight settled in my stomach. No, no, no, no.
My fingers fumbled against his neck, searching for a pulse point. For a moment, I felt nothing but the chill of his skin, and panic surged up so fast it stole the air from my lungs.
“Lykos, please… wake up,” I whispered, the words breaking apart as they left me. “Don’t do this,” I said, shaking him, fear spilling into every movement. “Lykos, wake up!”
I drew back and slapped him once. The sound cracked through the room.
Then his eyes opened, disoriented until they landed on me, and relief hit me so hard I thought I’d collapse.
“What…?” he murmured.
“Gas leak,” I said, my relief ballooning as he became more alert.
“You weren’t waking up… We need to get the kids out of this house.
” He pushed himself upright, swaying, and I caught his arm, bracing him.
His weight leaned into me for half a second before he steadied, jaw tightening as awareness snapped into place. “And Salvatore. Where is he?”
“He’s not here.” He stood up, his eyes darting around the room before landing on the bed where Aria slept. He was already moving as he rasped, “You get Aria, I’ll get Dimitros.”
“Okay… okay,” I muttered to myself and rushed to her bed, leaned over her. “Aria,” I said, shaking her gently at first. “Hey, baby, wake up.”
Nothing.
A spike of panic shot through me. I pulled the blanket back and scooped her into my arms, her long legs and arms dangling awkwardly off me. She was warm—thank God—but limp, her head lolling against my shoulder.
“Aria, come on,” I urged, patting her cheek lightly. “I need you to wake up for me.”
Still nothing.
My head swam, that same creeping dizziness clawing its way back. With Aria in my arms, I went toward the window and inhaled a deep breath. I hoped Aria was breathing fresh air too.
From the bathroom came a muffled thud and a curse.
“Lykos?” I called, fear snapping sharp in my chest.
“I’ve got him!” he shouted back, his voice strained. “Get out of the house.”
I tightened my grip on Aria and staggered toward the door, forcing my legs to move. One step. Then another. The hallway beyond blurred at the edges, the walls seeming to tilt.
“Lykos, hurry,” I called, my voice breathy and weak as I descended the stairs. How many damn steps did this house have? They seemed to go on forever.
Behind me, I heard heavy footsteps and I glanced over my shoulder. It was Lykos, carrying Dimitros over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Not that he had much of a choice with Dimitros being a sturdy teenager.
“He’s out cold,” he said, breathing hard. We were finally in the foyer. “We need to get out of here. Now!”
“I know.” My fingers tightened around Aria as I fumbled for the front door handle. It felt strangely distant, like my hands didn’t quite belong to me.
The latch stuck.
“No, no, no… Come on,” I whispered, yanking it harder.
The door finally gave out, swinging open as air rushed in again, stronger this time.
“Outside,” Lykos urged, right behind me. “Don’t stop.”
I stumbled out, sucking in a desperate breath as the world tilted and I nearly collapsed, my knees threatening to give way beneath me.
But I never let go of my baby.