“If I’m supposed to leave you here, you need to have this. If you don’t want to have it, then you’re coming with me,” he said, his voice firm. “There isn’t room for debate or discussion.”
The usual playful look that she’d just gotten used to seeing in his eyes was gone, now replaced with stern authority. She looked at the gun and swallowed hard as she took it in her hand. The metal felt like it weighed a ton in her hands. It probably would’ve been easier to just go with him, but she didn’t want to risk another episode like the last time.
“Parker.” Ethan’s voice cut into her thoughts, forcing her to look up at him again. “What are you going to do?”
“I’ll…keep the gun,” she answered, her voice small.
“Keep it with you,” he stated. “Not on the table, not beside you on the couch, not on the counter. Keep it in your hands until I get back. Got it?” She nodded. “Oh, and try not to mess around and shoot yourself with it or shoot me when I get back.”
Parker scowled. “I’m not dense, Ethan.”
“Most people who make those mistakes aren’t dense.” He stared at her for a few moments. “Now what do you need to make dinner?”
He handed her his phone so she could make a list in his notes. When she finished, he tucked his phone in his pocket. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
As soon as the door closed behind him, Parker flopped down on the couch with the sigh and placed the gun on her lap. Now what? Sit like a statue until he got back?
She reached over and grabbed the remote, flipping through channels to find something to focus on to pass the time. The T.V. only kept her attention for a short while because she was up pacing the living room. Her mind went through every worse case scenario possible. She imagined Jarrod breaking down the front door or shooting through the glass of the patio door. The gun felt heavy in her hand as she held it but it would be just her luck that she put it down and something bad happened.
“He’s just gone to the store; he won’t be gone forever,” she mumbled to herself as she padded over to the kitchen. She put the gun on the counter and opened the refrigerator, looking around. She grabbed a beer from the refrigerator and popped the top on it, taking a long pull to try to calm her nerves. The sun had already set for the night, making the woods look dark and ominous. Anxiety slowly crept its way inside her, the beer bottle visibly shaking in her hand as she took another pull. If Joker didn’t hurry up and get back here, she’d probably finish off the rest of the beer and be too drunk to cook.
A light knock finally sounded on the door. “Finally,” she mused to herself. She’d figured he’d needed help considering all the things she’d sent him for. So happy that he was finally back and she was safe again, she nearly skipped over to the door, forgetting to grab the gun on the counter. She drained the rest of the beer and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. “Jesus, I thought you’d never come—”
Her entire body froze when she came face to face with Jarrod as he sneered at her. “Long time, no see, sunshine,” he said. Parker’s chest tightened with fear, even more so when she realized she’d traded her gun for a now empty beer bottle. Jarrod took a step closer to her, forcing her to take a step back. “I almost thought your little white knight wouldn’t leave you alone long enough for me to do what I needed to do.” He cracked his neck. “I’m actually glad that this is where you ran to. There will be no one to hear you scream and right now…there’s no one to save you.”
Parker’s heart hammered in her chest, her mind running through all the self-defense moves Ethan had shown her. She slid the bottle down in her hand, tightly gripping the neck. She didn’t have the gun, but she wasn’t completely weaponless. Ethan’s words rang in her head. Don’t let him cause fear to overpower you.
“You shouldn’t be here,” she stated firmly, praying her voice didn’t sound as shaky as she felt.
He chuckled. “Or what? Unless you plan on killing me where I stand, I don’t think I have to go anywhere.”
She had two options. She could either try to make a dash for the kitchen and retrieve the gun or dart for the patio door and run into the woods. Neither option sounded good logically because they both required her to turn her back to him in order to get there fast enough. The gun.
Parker turned and sprinted toward the kitchen, shrieking in pain when Jarrod grabbed her by her hair. “Where do you think you’re running off to, bitch?” he asked, putting her in a choke hold and squeezing. She pulled at his arm with her free hand as panic slowly took over her body. Ethan’s face and his words filled her mind. You’re not a victim. You’re not a victim.
She gasped, tightening her hold on the bottle and swung back as hard as she could, breaking the hard glass against the side of Jarrod’s head. He growled in pain and let go, sending Parker crumbling to the floor gasping for air. Her palm stung as blood oozed from the gash. Before she could even react, Jarrod hoisted her in the air and threw her against the wall, knocking the air out of her. She fought to catch her breath as he grabbed her again. Her brain finally caught up and kicked in, remembering everything Ethan had taught her outside.
He punched her hard in the face and then in the side. The blow to the face stunned her, sending her stumbling into the coffee table. Jarrod jerked her upright and cocked his arm back to deliver another strike. She forced her eyes to focus as she grabbed the ceramic vase from the table hit him in the head with it. It didn’t seem to faze him like the beer bottle had, resulting in her being slapped onto the couch. Sharp pain covered her scalp as he yanked her head up by the hair. Think fast. Unable to escape his strong grip, she punched him in the groin, her knuckles throbbing after making contact with something hard.
“You didn’t think I’d expect you to do some shit like that?” he asked and chuckled. “You were always so damn predictable at times. Had I known you’d snitch on me, I would’ve dealt with you before you even had the chance to leave.”
“I didn’t fucking do anything!” she screamed at him, just as he swung at her. She blocked the hit as best as she could in a sitting position, unable to fully avoid it. She countered the attack with a punch to the gut, taking advantage of his loosened grip on her hair to stand and uppercut him. He stumbled back a little, allowing her to run around to the other side of the couch.
“Who else had the knowledge to get me booked then? It damn sure wasn’t Casper.” He took his time walking around the couch, Parker moving as he moved until she was back in the spot she started in, staring at him from the other side.
“Then you need to check the people you associated with,” she stated, her voice shaking as she wiped the blood that trickled from her mouth. If she could stall him long enough until Ethan got back, she’d be fine. It shouldn’t take long for him to get back now. Just hold him off a little bit longer, Parker.
Jarrod continued moving around the couch again and then stopped when Parker moved. “Parker, if you make me chase you, it’s going to be much worse. I don’t have time to play ring around the couch with you all damn night.”
“Who gives a fuck about what you want?” she spat. “I’m not a victim, Jarrod. You don’t scare me anymore.”
“Then why are you running from me?”
“Because I’m not dying tonight,” she answered confidently. Jarrod jumped over the couch and grabbed her but she blocked his next hit with an open palm strike, hearing the crunch of cartilage when the heel of her hand connected with his nose. He staggered back with a yell, blood pouring from his nose. She quickly scanned the area. Though she was a bit closer to the kitchen, she couldn’t risk being trapped in there in the event that Jarrod disarmed her somehow. Jarrod shook with anger, and Parker knew her time was disappearing fast. She didn’t have time to wait for Ethan or to stall Jarrod any long. She had to get the hell out of here. A sharp pain hit her every time she took a breath, but she mustered up the energy to run for the patio door.
“You fucking bitch!” Jarrod yelled and a shot rang out. Red hot fire radiated up
her already injured side, the bullet going straight through her and shattering the glass. She fell against the doorframe with a scream, but she couldn’t stop. Jarrod staggered behind her, shooting his gun again. She forced herself to keep running, wincing as the shattered door glass cut into the bottoms of her bare feet. She hand pressed against her side as pain overwhelmed her. Jarrod yelled her name behind her, but she didn’t stop. Though she was familiar with the woods during the day, she could hardly see anything to know where she was going. Another shot rang out, the bullet so close she heard it whiz by her head and hit the tree she ran past. Ethan, where are you?
She thought about hiding amongst the trees, but she could hardly see out here. Jarrod wore dark colors; there was no way she’d be able to make him out if he was close to her, but it wouldn’t be too hard for him to spot her in her white tank top if he was near.
Parker ran blindly through the woods. She could hear the lake, but couldn’t see it despite the bright moon. She wasn’t really sure of the direction she was going at this point until her feet hit wet sand, indicating she was on the shoreline of the lake. This was dangerous. There was no coverage here. She would’ve done better to risk her chances and hide in the woods than to stay out here in the open. Dizziness and nausea swirled inside of her, her breaths coming out as painful pants. She continued running along the water as fast as she could, feeling dizzy with each step she took. Her eyes were finally adjusting to the darkness, but she was starting to see two of everything. Just as she switched directions to head back into the trees, another shot rang out and a burning hot sensation hit her leg, causing her to cry out as she fell to one knee. She bit her lip, pushed herself up and continued moving, her run now an extremely painful limp. Another shot went off, causing another fire hot pain in her other leg, sending her to the ground. Tears streamed her face as she forced herself to crawl along the sand. It couldn’t end this way. She didn’t want to give up the fight, but she wasn’t too sure how much more she could do when she already had three bullet wounds.
Jarrod walked over and kicked her in the stomach. Parker coughed violently, the taste of metallic making her nauseous. She groaned and rolled over onto her back, feeling the cool water of the lake lap against her hair as it washed upon the shore. Her eyes drifted to the sky, which was filled with bright stars. Tears burned her eyes as she struggled to breathe. She’d done all she could. She couldn’t fight anymore. Ethan wasn’t here. Despite her efforts, she was going to die tonight and there was nothing she could do to stop it.
Her mind went to the time she and Ethan spent at the lake together. She remembered how happy she was and remembered how sensual his lips were when she kissed him. She remembered their first time last night and how she wished she could stay in that moment forever, especially knowing what was to come. His beautiful blue eyes were burned into her memory, causing tears to roll down the side of her face and dissolve into her hair. Jarrod stood over her, panting hard as he pointed his gun at her. Her vision doubled as she looked up at him.
“I have to give it to you, baby,” he grunted, wiping blood away from his eye as it dripped down the side of his head. “I wasn’t expecting you to give this much of a fight. You know I always like a challenge.” Parker coughed, trying her best to hold pressure to her side. She could hardly move her legs, a single muscle twitch sending another wave of pain through her. Her body shivered involuntarily, causing Jarrod to laugh. “Cold? That’s your body reacting to blood loss.” His eyes bored into hers. “Tell me, Parker. Did you have sex with him last night? Things looked like it got hot and heavy on the couch.”
Parker was in too much pain to be surprised about what she’d just heard. He was here last night.
“Well, did you?” he asked, his tone sharp.
“Fuck…you,” she gasped, coughing some more.
He shook his head. “I’ll take that as a yes then.” He shot her in the hip and pain and fire consumed her, but she could no longer scream. “Ah, you thought I was going to end it? Why come all this way and not make you suffer a bit?” he sneered. Shouting sounded in the distance, but everything was becoming so fuzzy she didn’t know what was real or part of her imagination.
“Parker!”
It was Ethan. He’d come for her. She turned her head toward his voice, words trapped in her throat as the world started to spin around her.
“Parker!”
Another shot rang out, but she didn’t know whom it came from or where it went. She couldn’t see Jarrod anymore, her gaze focused solely on Ethan and the person with him as he ran through the wet sand to her, screaming her name.
“Ethan…” she whispered before closing her eyes.
Chapter 11
Joker
“Thanks for inviting us over, man. You sure she won’t mind?” Mozart asked as he, Summer, and Joker got out of their cars. Joker shook his head.
“Nah. You’re friends of mine. I’m sure she’ll…”
He stopped in his tracks when he saw the front door ajar, his hair standing on end. Mozart moved to stand next to him. “Something doesn’t feel right,” he said, his voice low.
“It isn’t right. Parker wouldn’t leave the door open like this,” he said, dropping the groceries on the ground and rushing back to his Jeep. Whipping open the driver door, he reached under his seat and pulled out a Glock, flipping the safety off.
“Summer, get in the car and lock the doors until I know what’s going on. And call 911,” Mozart said and followed Joker into the cabin.
Dread filled him as he walked through the mess in the living room, broken glass crunching under his shoes. Drops of blood lead to the shattered patio door, blood spatter on the dining table and one of the chairs. His eyes swept the area, landing on the gun Parker left on the counter.
“Grab that, Mozart,” he said, nodding toward it and moved through the patio door. Gunshots rang out in the distance and he heard Parker scream. Mozart was right behind him as he dashed blindly through the woods. Another shot rang out and he paused, listening hard.
“Sounds like it’s coming from near the lake,” Mozart whispered. They rushed through the trees until they reached the shoreline. Joker frantically scanned the area, the moonlight reflecting off the lake revealing a dark figure standing a few yards away. A flash of the gun went off toward the ground. Parker.
“Parker!” Joker yelled, sprinting down the wet shore. Fury and fear coursed through his veins as he did his best to aim his gun. He fired a single shot and the standing figured dropped to the ground. Joker ran even faster. “Parker!” She didn’t respond. She was motionless on the ground and the closer he got to her, the worse it looked.
He dropped to his knees next to her, immediately checking her pulse. It was so faint it was barely there and he barely felt her breath when he leaned close to her face. If help didn’t get there in time, she was guaranteed to die. He quickly pulled out his phone and turned on the flashlight, sweeping it over her. From what he could see, there were four areas gushing with blood. The right side of her face was bruised and swollen, and her lip was split.
“Parker, can you hear me, baby doll?” he coaxed, caressing the other side of her face. She didn’t respond. He put his gun in his waistband and hovered over her chest. “You can’t die on me. I can’t lose you too.”
Mozart finally caught up to him as Joker started CPR on her. Mozart immediately dropped down on the other side of Parker to help, taking over the chest compressions as Joker gave mouth to mouth. “Who the hell is this guy?”
“Ex boyfriend,” Joker responded before breathing into Parker’s mouth. He spit after each time he breathed into her, not wanting to swallow in case he managed to get some of her blood into his mouth. He shouldn’t have fucking left her. How could he have been so stupid to leave her here all alone? Tears burned his eyes as he continuously checked her pulse and tried to talk to her, breathing into her when Mozart instructed him to. Sirens sounded in the distance, the bright emergency lights cutting through the dark forest.
“Joker, we have to get her to the ambulance or she’ll bleed to death,” Mozart said, putting a firm on hand on his shoulder.
“Right,” Joker acknowledged, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. He carefully scooped Parker into his arms. There was no telling the kind of injuries she had, but time was not on her side right now. He rushed as fast as he could back to the awaiting ambulance and sheriffs, placing her on the stretcher and stepping back for the paramedics to do what they needed to do.
“Ethan! What’s going on?” a deep voice said. He turned to see Gerald and whom he assumed was her mother running toward him. Before he could answer, they looked toward the stretcher and saw Parker quickly being strapped to it, bloodied and bruised. Her mother screamed and ran over to her. Gerald stared in shock, as if not able to process that his daughter was nearly dying.
“He found her,” Joker said, suddenly feeling numb.
“Ma’am, we need you to step away,” a paramedic stated firmly.
“This is my daughter!” her mother wailed, sobbing as she looked at her daughter’s body.
“You can follow us to the hospital, but if we don’t leave now, she won’t make it,” another paramedic added.
“Come on, dear, we’ll follow behind them,” Gerald said, wrapping a comforting arm behind his wife. “Ethan, are you coming?”
“I…yeah. I…I um, need to get cleaned up first,” he stammered. Gerald gave him a tight nod and ushered his sobbing wife to their car. The ambulance peeled down the gravel driveway with the Lovicks following close behind, leaving only Joker, Mozart, summer, the sheriffs, and dead Jarrod.
“Is the suspect still in the area?” a tall, skinny cop with pale skin and dark eyes inquired.
“He was taken down on the shore of the lake, sir,” Mozart answered. Joker couldn’t even focus on what anyone was talking about. All he could think of was how he’d failed Parker. He’d told her the entire time she was here that he was here to protect her and in the end, he hadn’t been here when she needed him. He should’ve just taken her with him for safe measure. With the amount of blood she looked to have lost, things weren’t looking good. After losing his mom, he didn’t know how he’d handle losing Parker too, especially on his watch.
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