36. Kate
Kate
The second his fist connected with my face, I snapped. Pain exploded across my cheek, my head whipping to the side, but I didn’t fall.
I couldn’t. I needed to get Noah.
All I could see was my baby in his arms, crying and scared, reaching out for me.
A sound tore from my throat, raw as I launched myself forward again. “You don’t get to touch him,” I screamed, my voice shaking with rage as much as fear.
My stepfather barely had time to react before I slammed into him, my hands grabbing, clawing, shoving.
Years of swallowed fear, of staying quiet, of taking it, all came out at once. My hand connected with his face, then again, and again.
“Give him to me,” I shrieked, my fingers digging into his arms, tearing at him until his grip faltered for just a second.
It was enough.
I ripped Noah out of his arms and clutched him to my chest, turning my body instinctively to shield him.
“I’ve got you,” I whispered desperately, even as my whole body shook. “Mama’s got you.”
“You stupid girl,” my stepfather said as he lunged for me.
I stepped back, but my mother moved in from the side, grabbing at my arm.
“Give him here,” she snapped, her nails digging into my skin.
“No!” I twisted, holding Noah tighter, trying to pull away from them both at once. “Stay away from him!”
They didn’t stop. There were hands grabbing, pulling, dragging me, but I fought back, kicking, twisting, using every ounce of strength I had left to protect my baby boy.
“You’re not taking him,” I cried, my voice breaking as I struggled against them. “You’re not taking my son!”
My stepfather’s fist came at me again, too fast to block. My vision blurred, my ears were ringing, but I didn’t go down. I couldn’t, not while I was holding Noah. I tightened my grip, curling around him, taking the impact and forcing my legs to stay under me.
A roar filled the room. Finn.
The world blurred as everything exploded into movement. Bodies collided, shouts rang out, but I couldn’t focus on any of it. All I knew was that Noah was in my arms and I wasn’t letting go.
Strong hands suddenly grabbed me. I flinched, ready to fight again.
“Kate, it’s me.” Reaper’s deep voice broke through the chaos.
Before I could react, he lifted me with Noah still clutched tight against my chest and carried me away from the chaos.
“No,” I gasped, twisting to look back.
Finn was on my stepfather, but he wasn’t hitting him. He was destroying him.
Keno and Link were dragging him back, hauling him off a body that wasn’t moving.
My stomach dropped, not because of my stepfather’s condition, but because Finn would get into trouble for us.
My mother was screaming, thrashing in Riot’s grip, another brother I didn’t recognize holding her arms pinned behind her back.
My mind flittered to the unconscious prospect back at the house, and I hoped he was okay.
Everything felt distant and unreal.
Reaper didn’t stop moving. He carried me straight out the house, my grip tightening on Noah as the cool air hit my skin. My whole body trembled, adrenaline crashing, but I didn’t loosen my hold on him.
“I’ve got you,” I whispered again, pressing my face into his hair. “I’ve got you, baby . . . I’ve got you.”
Reaper set me down in the back of the car, making sure I was steady before stepping back. He closed the door, but the window was cracked open, and he stood outside like a wall between us and the world.
I watched through the window as the rest of it unfolded in flashes.
Spider appeared around the side of the house, dragging the suited man by the collar like he weighed nothing. He hauled him into view and dumped him unceremoniously onto the ground like trash.
All I could hear was Noah’s soft cries and feel his tiny body pressed against mine, warm and alive. I rocked him gently, tears spilling silently down my face now, the fight draining out of me all at once.
“They’re not taking you,” I whispered, my voice breaking as I pressed a kiss to his head. “They’re never taking you again.”