38. Chapter Thirty-eight
Ethan finished brushing his teeth and reached for his phone, but it again came up empty for notifications. He frowned at it. He’d texted Katie goodnight like he had every night since her birthday. She always texted right back. He shook his head to himself. She was probably getting ready for bed too and hadn’t seen it yet. They had literally just left the house. It was ridiculous to get worked up just because she hadn’t responded immediately.
So then, why did something cold gnaw more fiercely at the pit of his stomach with each passing minute and make him wish he’d just walked her home tonight? He wanted to tell himself he was overreacting and being far too irrational, but…
He shoved his phone into his pocket and headed for the door. The worst that would happen if he was wrong was that he might look foolish. But he couldn’t shake the feeling something didn’t seem right. He’d never sleep if he didn’t make sure.
He strode up the drive, through the yard, and into the woods. His heart thumped an ominous beat, and he prayed it would all just be an overreaction on his part. Through the branches, it looked like her kitchen light was on. When he drew nearer, a sound caught his attention. Splashing at the water’s edge. It could have been any number of things, but he broke into a run, something sinister twisting in his gut.
On the other side of the trees, he hesitated just long enough to take in the scene playing out in the water. Though the yard light barely reached the lake, Ethan had no trouble distinguishing the dark figure bent over the roiling surface. In one heartbeat, he knew exactly what was going on and sprang into action.
He body-slammed into Christopher, sending him flailing into the lake. Ethan almost went down with him but regained his balance and reached into the water. His hand caught an arm, and he pulled Katie up. She broke the surface, gasping and coughing. Thank God!
Her other arm thrashed at him as if trying weakly to fight him off. He grabbed it and drew her toward him. “Katie, it’s me! It’s me.”
She stopped fighting and almost fell into him, her hands reaching to grasp his shirt, clinging to him. It sounded like she gasped his name, but it was so raspy it was hard to tell if it was that or a choked sob.
He wanted to make sure she was all right, but they still had a very real danger to contend with. The water splashed only feet away as Christopher scrambled back up. Ethan steered Katie toward the shore, trying to keep an eye on both her and her brother. Christopher stalked after them. Despite the lack of adequate light, Ethan could see the twisted sneer on his face and the glint of his dark eyes. The man looked possessed. He was high on something, which made him even more dangerous.
Katie stumbled out of the water, still coughing and sucking in air. He gently pushed her toward the cottage as Christopher drew closer. “Go call 911.”
She hesitated, glancing up at him and then at Christopher before hurrying away. Now Ethan just had to keep Christopher from reaching her until help arrived. He focused on him just in time to see him pull something out of his pocket. Moonlight flashed on the sharp edge of a switchblade. A thread of ice flowed through Ethan’s blood.
He put his hands up and took a slow step back. “Christopher, you don’t want to do this.”
He glanced left and right for something he could use to defend himself but found nothing before Christopher lunged at him.
Katie burst into the cottage. Her throat and lungs burned with every gasping breath, and she still felt like she needed to cough up the water she’d inhaled right before Ethan had pulled her out of the lake. She scrambled around the kitchen island, frantically searching the floor for her phone. When she found it, she snatched it up and tapped the screen to dial. It responded sluggishly to her wet hands and violent trembling. Panic surged through her body, but she finally hit call. She put the phone to her ear, swiping a dripping strand of hair out of her eyes.
The seconds seemed stretch out before a woman’s voice came from the other end. “911, where is your emergency?”
Katie gasped out her address and didn’t wait for any more questions. “My brother tried to drown me, and now I’m afraid he’s going to kill my boyfriend.”
“Where is your brother now?”
“They’re both down by the edge of the lake. My boyfriend sent me to call for help.”
“And what’s your name?”
“Katie. Katie Lachlan.”
“All right, Katie, there is help on the way. Are you safe right now?”
“I’m in my cottage.” She looked toward the front door, torn between running to lock it or going out to see what was happening. Was she safe? If Christopher had gotten inside once, he could again.
“Does your brother have a weapon?”
The dispatcher’s question made up her mind. She had to know if Ethan was all right.
“I’m not sure.” She moved toward the door and peeked out before stepping into the porch. It was hard to see the lake in the dark, but she thought she heard the sounds of a scuffle. She moved to the window for a better look. The dispatcher may have said something more, but fear muted her voice. Ethan and Christopher looked to be fighting for control over something.
Terror and dread shot through Katie. “I think he has a knife!”
She stared at the struggle, unable to process what the dispatcher said. Then, like a horrific scene from a movie, Ethan went to the ground. Christopher was right there on top of him, trying to drive the knife into his chest. A cry burst from Katie’s throat. The phone slipped from her hand. Ethan was going to die right in front of her.
But something snapped inside her. She’d already lost Grandma. She would not lose him too. Spinning around, she dashed back into the cottage. She nearly slipped on the water she’d left on the kitchen floor, but she caught her balance and rushed to the stairway, where she grabbed the baseball bat. Running back out, she burst past the porch door and did not hesitate to run toward Ethan and Christopher. The moment they were within reach, she wound up and swung the bat as hard as she could.
The wood cracked against Christopher’s ribs. He cried out and toppled halfway over. Ethan shoved him the rest of the way and stumbled to his feet. He grabbed the bat from her and pushed her behind him, backing them both toward the cottage.
Christopher let out a guttural yell. He sucked in a couple of ragged breaths from his hands and knees before readjusting his grip on his knife and shoving to his feet. His balance wavered briefly, the only indication of Katie’s attack doing any damage. But then his gaze locked on the two of them, burning with the intent to kill.
That’s when the sound of a siren registered for Katie. Bright headlights and flashing red and blue flooded the yard and lit up the edge of the lake. Christopher raised his hand to shield his eyes, squinting. Ethan grabbed Katie’s arm and led her toward the police car.
A familiar voice rang out. “Christopher, drop the knife right now!”
Katie huddled close to Ethan as Eric stepped past them, pistol raised.
“I said drop the knife!”
Christopher glared at him, squeezing the knife as if he still intended to use it on someone. For a few heartbeats, Katie thought it would end with him getting shot. But, with a curse, Christopher threw the knife away. Within moments, Eric had him on the ground and cuffed.
At first, Katie couldn’t move. Numbness overtook her body and her mind, her thoughts coming sluggishly. But then she felt Ethan’s hand on her arm, and sharp reality crashed back in. She spun to face him. Before she could ask him if he was all right, her gaze locked on the blood oozing down his arm and the dark, wet spot on the lower edge of his shirt.
She gasped. “You’re hurt.”
He glanced at his arm. Blood dripped from a laceration across his forearm. He then gingerly peeled up his shirt. A little below his ribs, there appeared to be a bleeding puncture wound. Panic ignited in Katie’s chest.
Someone called their names. She looked over to see Tom, Evelyn, and Becca rushing up to them. Despite the flurry of questions and exclamations, Katie’s mind reeled too much to respond. Somewhere in the chaos, another squad car had shown up. The second officer placed Christopher in his vehicle while Eric strode toward them.
He eyed Ethan. “I’ll call for an ambulance.”
But Tom held up his hand to stop him and turned to Evelyn. “It will be faster if you take him in. We’ll take care of things here and follow as soon as we can.”
Katie pointed Evelyn toward the cottage, her voice breaking loose. “We can take my car.” The sooner Ethan had medical help, the better. For all she knew, he could be bleeding internally.
She rushed ahead of them for her keys. In the kitchen, she yanked open a drawer and grabbed a couple of old hand towels.
Back outside, Evelyn helped Ethan into the passenger seat, and Katie handed her the towels. She pressed one to his stomach and used the other to cover his arm. “Try to keep pressure on the wounds as best you can to stop the bleeding.”
If she was worried, her calm voice didn’t reveal it. She shut the door and turned to Katie, her gaze doing a quick sweep. “Are you hurt?”
Only now did Katie take stock of herself. Her throat and chest still burned, and she was vaguely aware that her wrist throbbed, but she shook her head. “Not badly, no.”
“Good.” She touched Katie’s shoulder gently before rounding the car.
Katie opened the door to get into the back seat but paused, her gaze falling on Becca, Tom, and Eric. “Christopher was waiting for me in the cottage. I don’t know how he got in.” A flush of cold washed through her, pooling in her stomach. “I don’t know where O’Malley is.”
What if Christopher had hurt or killed him? There was no telling how long he’d been inside waiting for her.
Tom’s expression communicated understanding. “We’ll find him. You go.”
Katie nodded. No matter what had happened, she needed to stay with Ethan.
Inside the car, she slid to the middle to see him better as Evelyn pulled away from the cottage. He breathed raggedly, though she couldn’t tell if it was still the adrenaline over what had happened or from pain. She reached to put her hand on his arm.
He looked over his shoulder at her. “I’ll be all right.”
She squeezed his arm, praying that was true. Then she caught Evelyn’s gaze in the rearview mirror, her expression one of motherly understanding.
“He will be.”
Katie forced herself to nod. Surely, she would know. She’d seen much worse injuries in the ER. Still, tears bit at Katie’s eyes and burned the back of her throat. With effort, she swallowed them down. She had to keep it together for now, but the dam would break eventually. She just prayed Ethan would be all right and at her side when it did.
Though the ride to the hospital passed in a blur, it still felt like forever before they finally pulled in near the emergency room doors. Katie crawled out, and she and Evelyn helped Ethan out of the car. Blood had seeped through the towels, and Katie fought to keep the panicky sensation in her chest from growing.
Their entrance into the hospital set off a flurry in which Evelyn explained what had happened. Just before a nurse hurried Ethan to an examination room, he turned to his mom.
“Stay with Katie. Don’t leave her alone.”
“I won’t,” she assured him.
The tears almost came then as Katie watched him walk away. But that cold numbness crept over her again, and everything felt like too much to handle. She was a helpless little girl again, unable to stop bad things from happening.
An arm wrapped around her, and she flinched, realizing she’d just been staring at the closed door to the hall where Ethan had disappeared. Evelyn held her close, and somewhere in however many seconds or minutes had passed, another nurse approached them.
This time, they brought Katie to an examination room. Just like she’d promised Ethan, Evelyn didn’t leave her side. A doctor listened to her breathing, examined her throat, and X-rayed her wrist. It turned out to be only sprained and not broken. Another nurse brought Katie a pair of scrub pants and a sweatshirt to change out of her wet clothes, which she’d begun to shiver in.
When they finally let her return to the waiting room, Becca, Tom, and Eric were waiting there. Katie had hoped Ethan would be too, but they had not received word on his condition.
Stomach aching, she gulped and looked at Tom. “O’Malley?”
“Don’t worry, he’s all right.”
She released a huge breath, and he continued, “We found him hiding upstairs, unharmed.”
Thank God. Christopher could have done such awful things to him.
Evelyn guided her to the chair in the corner of the room, and Katie sank into it, her legs a little shaky. A moment later, Eric sat on the edge of the chair next to her.
“I know this is difficult, but could you tell me what happened? We searched your cottage and found the screen in your sewing room torn out.”
Katie closed her eyes. She’d been forgetting to close that window, not that it would have stopped Christopher. With a wavering breath, she nodded and recounted the nightmare that had awaited her after walking home from the Harts’.