Chapter 43. WE ARE GOING HOME
(Sienna)
I don’t know how long I sat there, cradling Lizzie in my arms, with my gaze fixed on nothing in particular and my mind lost in a daydream. That was until the house lit up with blue and red lights. Shortly after that, someone shouted from the opposite side of the main door.
“Police! Open up!”
Before I knew it, the front door slammed open, and two cops with guns barged in.
I opened my mouth and immediately closed it. I was covered in blood, my knuckles white after so long holding tight onto Lizzie’s sweater. My vision blurred with tears as one of the police officers pointed his gun at me while the other one secured the perimeter.
“Miss, I’m gonna need you to put your hands up and slowly step away from her?”
“I didn’t mean to. They were going to kill me,” I cried.
“Miss, I won’t repeat myself. Put your hands up and step away from the girl.”
I followed the officer’s orders. I stood and put my hands up with my palms facing him. They were shaking and covered in blood.
So much blood.
“All clear!” the second officer yelled from the opposite side of the cabin.
“Don’t move,” he ordered, still pointing his gun at me. He knelt and checked Lizzie’s vitals first, and then James’. Then, he took his radio out and spoke to the hand unit. “Dispatch, this is Officer Larsen, Badge number 467112, Unit 57. I need backup at 12 Alma Bridge Road, near Los Gatos Creek Trail. Requesting one unit to respond. We have two 10-7s on the scene, and I’m gonna need an EMS. Code 3.”
“Officer Larsen, this is dispatch. Copy that. One backup unit is needed at 12 Alma Bridge Road, near Los Gatos Trail. You have requested an EMS and have two 10-7s on the scene—code 3. Your backup unit is en route to your location, arrival thirteen minutes. Keep us updated on the situation,” a woman spoke through the radio.
“While we wait for backup to arrive, why don’t you tell me your name?”
“My name is Sienna Moore,” I responded, still holding my hands up.
“Okay, Sienna, can you explain to me what happened here?”
* * *
I was sitting inside the ambulance when I heard the screams.
The paramedics had already examined my head wound, disinfected and stitched the cuts from my arm, and cleaned the few lacerations I got from the ropes. I also had scratches from the fight with Lizzie, and my neck and face were a canvas of bruises. Still, I regarded them with pride, seeing them as badges of honor.
I didn’t care about the scars on my body.
I had survived.
“Sienna! SIENNA!”
I raised my head upon hearing my name spoken by the familiar voice.
A police officer blocked Zayn’s access to the cabin with a hand pressed on his chest.
“Sorry, kid, but you can’t go inside. It’s a crime scene,” the police officer informed him.
“What the fuck!? I’m the one who called you. Let me in, you sonofabitch; my girlfriend is in there!”
“Zayn? Zayn!” I kept calling his name while I ran toward him. As soon as our bodies made contact, he engulfed me in his arms—one around my waist while his other hand cradled my head against his muscular chest. A moment later, Noah and Ander joined the group.
“We were worried sick. What happened?” Noah asked, stroking my hair while I buried my face in Zayn’s chest. Their smell and warmth grounded me.
An hour ago, I was so sure I would die in this cabin that the fear of not seeing and being with them again made me do something I never thought I was capable of.
“I killed them. I killed them.” That was all I could mumble between sobs as they held me together. Without them, my knees would have probably hit the floor by now; I was just wiped out. My heart was still pounding, and I shivered as the adrenaline wore off. I didn’t even realize Ander had moved away from our group hug until I saw him chatting with Officer Larsen out of the corner of my eye. That was when I asked the guys to give me a little room to catch my breath.
Ander nodded to the police officer, and after a quick handshake, he went to speak with another officer who had arrived with the backup. Officer Larsen, on the other hand, turned his attention to me.
“Miss Moore,” he began, “the paramedics are ready to transport you to the hospital. They need to address your wounds and run a few tests to ensure there’s no internal bleeding or concussion.” Suddenly, Officer Larsen was interrupted by an incoming phone call. “I’ll need to take this; Agent Miller is calling me,” he said, glancing at the caller ID. “I’ll need you to come by the station tomorrow morning to give an official statement and answer some additional questions, but for now, you’re free to go,” he added, gesturing to the paramedics. “Excuse me,” he concluded, turning away and heading toward the cabin, where Lizzie and James lay under a white sheet.
“Thank you, Officer,” I responded. I turned my face to Noah and Zayn and added, “He said Agent Miller was calling him?”
Noah tucked a piece of hair behind my ear and replied, “When we spotted blood in the apartment and couldn’t reach you because your phone was off, we got worried. That’s when we decided to contact Agent Miller and told him that we suspected the stalker might have hurt you. We also shared your location with him.”
“How did you know where I was?” I asked.
“Your keys. You probably haven’t noticed, but your key ring is an Apple Tag. You were lucky that James and Maggie, or shall I say, Lizzie, had iPhones but had left them in the car,” Ander chimed in once he rejoined our group. “He called us back before we got here to tell us that the police had arrived at the location and that you were safe. He also told us there were two casualties, James Reed and Elizabeth Price, whom you had identified as Maggie Towerby.”
Even before he spoke, I could feel Zayn’s eyes scanning every inch of my body, looking for injuries.
“You’re covered in blood. Did they hurt you?” he asked, his voice tinged with rising anger.
“Yes, they did. But this blood is not mine.”
Zayn and Noah raised their eyebrows and looked at each other before looking back at me with puzzled expressions.
“I’ll explain everything later,” I promised.
One of the paramedics, a petite woman in her thirties, approached us from the ambulance.
“Miss Moore, please follow me. We’re taking you to the hospital now.”
“I’ll come with you in the ambulance,” Zayn stated.
“I think it’s better if I go alone and meet you all there. It doesn’t feel right to leave Noah and Ander behind, and they only allow one person with me,” I replied.
“Which hospital are you taking her to?” Noah asked her.
“We’re taking her to Stanford University Medical Center,” she answered.
“I’ll see you there, guys.” I placed a gentle kiss on Noah’s, Ander’s, and Zayn’s lips before I followed the paramedic.
She tilted her head slightly as she lowered it, giving me a curious look before offering a timid smile. I replied to her by pressing my lips together and shrugging my shoulders.
Girl, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you.
* * *
The drugs the doctors had given me worked wonders. They determined that I didn’t have any internal bleeding and only suffered from a mild concussion. X-rays were taken due to my complaint about my right hand, but fortunately, there were no broken bones. Just a sprained wrist, which was now nicely wrapped in a bandage. I had to return in two weeks to have the stitches removed from my arm, but the only instructions they gave me were to rest and take strong painkillers.
I sat perched on the edge of a hospital bed, my feet dangling, hands resting atop my legs. As I awaited my discharge papers, the boys entered the hospital room.
“Are you feeling better, babe?” Zayn asked.
They all seemed concerned, and despite my reassurances between each test that I was fine, they continued to touch my arm and shoulder as if seeking reassurance of my presence. That I was alive.
“Yes, I think so,” I responded with a strained smile.
Ander gently touched the back of my neck, his fingers tracing tiny circles on my skin.
“What the hell happened, love?” he asked.
I took a deep breath and then spilled the whole story, starting from when I found the USB drive, getting hit with Zayn’s trophy, and ending with the showdown I had with Lizzie. I didn’t hold back any details as I filled them in on everything.
“Fuck. How come we never noticed anything?” Noah snarled.
“I guess her acting was worthy of an Oscar from the Academy…” I mocked, but there was no amusement in my voice. “You should have seen her eyes. It was like looking at a completely different person.”
“Well, I’m not sure if it’s the best thing to say right now, but I’m fucking proud of you.” Zayn grabbed my face and kissed me like I was his lifeline and worried that I would disappear the moment he stopped kissing me.
“I had the best self-defense teacher,” I whispered against his lips.
“You fought like the queen you are, Sienna.” Noah turned my face and kissed me, too, but his kiss was gentle, his tongue caressing mine.
I had never felt more loved than at this moment…but something else was missing. I longed for one final kiss from the boy who now stood a few feet away from me, his hands tucked in his pockets and his eyes clouded with concern. I cautiously stepped down from the bed and closed the distance between us.
I placed my hand on his cheek. “Look at me, Ander,” I pleaded. Ander turned his head until our eyes connected. “Are you alright?” I whispered.
“I should be asking you that question, not the other way around.”
“I’m fine, Ander,” I promised.
“But I’m not. It’s all my dad’s fault. If it wasn’t for him, none of this would’ve happened. I wouldn’t have forgiven myself if Mag…Lizzie or James…” His voice caught, tears pouring down his cheeks. Ander took a deep breath and closed his eyes, his face leaning toward my hand to seek comfort in my presence. “I thought we lost you.”
“I said, look at me.”
He gently opened his beautiful ocean-blue eyes.
“I’m truly okay, so let’s stop thinking about the what-ifs. You, Zayn, and Noah are the loves of my life, and when I thought I might not see you again, your love gave me the strength to keep going, to fight. Your father made mistakes…yes. But he is not the one who killed my parents or hurt me. And I would never judge you by your father’s mistakes. Ever. I love you, Ander. So fucking much.” I leaned in and kissed him. It was a passionate, desperate, soul-consuming kiss. One of those kisses that you could feel in the depths of your bones. A kiss full of promises. Promises of a brand-new future together.
Just the four of us.
Ander interrupted our kiss, swiftly intertwined his fingers with mine, and led me toward the room door. Glancing back, I saw Zayn and Noah following us.
“Where are we going?” I asked him.
Ander gazed at me, offering a smile that warmed my heart.
“Home, my love. We are going home.”