“Sera!” she screamed, trying to get away.
Gasping, I ran outside through the rain and up to the couple. “Let her go!” I hollered, trying to shove him away from her.
He let go of her hair and backhanded me.
“No,” she screamed as I fell backwards. Sinclair elbowed him in the ribs and he let go of her completely. She then raked her fingernails across his face and he hollered angrily.
I stood back up and then both of us were running towards the house. I reached the doorway first and slammed it shut when she was inside. Locking it, I turned to her. “Call the police!”
Sobbing, she grabbed her cell phone off of the coffee table.
“Mommy, what’s going on?” asked Emma.
I turned to find her standing in the hallway, looking frightened beyond belief.
“Go to your room and hide under the bed,” I ordered, rushing towards her. “Stay there until I tell you it’s safe.”
The sound of breaking glass in the kitchen made all three of us gasp.
“The front door!” I whispered, changing my mind. “We need to get out of here and get to Fred.”
Sinclair turned and ran back towards the front door as I picked up Emma and followed. She flung it open and I pointed to Fred’s. “Go that way.”
As we were racing down the porch steps, Sinclair’s foot caught on something and she fell forward, landing on her knees.
“Come on,” I cried, reaching for her hand.
Crying, she got up and we started running towards Fred’s driveway when Michael rounded the corner, his gun pointed at us.
“Stop right there unless you want to lose that little girl,” he said, grinning like a lunatic. He was between both houses and moving slowly through the rain.
We froze.
“Please, don’t do this,” begged Sinclair. “Let us go.”
“I’ll let them go if you come with me, Sinclair,” he said, as the rain continued pouring over us. With his pale skin and pointy features, he looked truly ghoulish.
She held up her hands. “Okay. Just, put the gun down and I’ll do whatever you want.”
“No. You step away from those two and get into the trunk. Then we’ll leave together.”
“You promise not to hurt them.”
“I’m not making any promises, Sinclair. But, if you do what I ask, there’s a good chance that all three of you will walk away unharmed.”
It was then that I saw Fred’s silhouette, coming up behind Michael.
“Why are you doing this?” I asked, trying to stall him.
“Because she’s mine,” he said, motioning towards Sinclair. “And she knows it.”
Shuddering, I thought back to Ray and how he’d sounded just as insane.
“Put your gun down, young man,” ordered Fred.
Michael stiffened up, his smile now cold. “I have my gun aimed at the child. Can you see the red dot?”
I hadn’t noticed the red light emitting from Michael’s gun, until now. It was aimed our way and all of the blood rushed to my head as I thought of my baby getting shot.
“This isn’t your business, neighbor,” said Michael, when Fred didn’t respond.
“You’ve made it my business,” he said cocking his gun. “Put your gun down. Now.”
A set of headlights moved towards us and I knew immediately that it was Thane. As the car pulled closer, everything seemed to happen at once. Michael turned around and fired his gun at Fred, who was still about fifteen-feet away. He fired back at the same time and I watched in horror as Fred fell to his knees, while Michael remained standing.
“Run,” I screamed at Sinclair, putting Emma down onto the grass.
We both took off in opposite directions as Thane’s car barreled over the curb, directly towards Michael. The gun went off again, just before Thane crashed into him.
Chapter Forty-Seven
Sera
One Month Later
“You looked beautiful walking down that isle, today,” said Thane.
“Thank you,” I replied, sitting back in the wicker chair. I looked down at the light-blue chiffon dress and then back at him. “You looked pretty handsome yourself.”
He was wearing a black tuxedo and I’d never seen him look so debonair. We’d just gotten back from Sinclair and Reed’s wedding, and were sitting on the porch, both of us having a nightcap.
“Thank you.”
I glanced over at Fred and Arlene’s house and noticed the television was still on through the front window. They’d left the wedding three hours earlier, to help babysit Emma. As usual, Fred was being a night owl. “Should we invite Fred over for a beer?” I asked.
“No, let him rest. I’m sure it took a lot out of him today. The wedding.”
“I’m just glad that he’s okay,” I replied, thinking back to that night, when Michael had shot him in the shoulder. Fortunately, he’d recovered, but because he was in his seventies, it was a slow process.
“He’s a tough old man,” said Thane.
“He sure is.”
“You’re a pretty tough cookie yourself. The way you helped save Sinclair. This wedding today almost didn’t take place.”
“You’d have done the same thing. Besides, it was you who ended up saving the day. You were the real hero.” After Thane had hit Michael with the car, the gun had been knocked from his hand. He’d tried running, but Thane had managed to subdue him and now the maniac was awaiting trial for attempted murder.
“It was more luck than anything. Two minutes later and who knows what would have happened.”
“Everything happens for a reason,” I replied, smiling. “You were meant to save all of us and, laugh at me or not, it was written in the stars.”
He smiled and reached into his tuxedo pocket. “Speaking of which… close your eyes.”
I stared at him. “Why?”
“Just do it,” he said, a twinkle in his eyes.
I closed them.
“Now, concentrate on us.”
“On us?”
“Yes, and keep your eyes closed. Focus on you, Emma, and me.” He began massaging my shoulders. “What do you think the stars say about us?”
An image of us on a tropical beach came to me. We were both smiling and gloriously happy. Then I saw my Emma. She was a couple years older and holding onto a little boy’s hand. The boy smiled and I noticed that he had Thane’s golden eyes.
“Only good things, Thane,” I said, feeling the goose-bumps on my arms and legs.
He released my shoulders and the next thing I felt was something being slipped onto my finger.
“You and Emma are both my stars,” he whispered as I opened my eyes. “And I want to live the rest of my life surrounded by your light.”
My eyes filled with tears as I stared down at the diamond engagement ring, which sparkled under the moonlight.
“What do you say, babe? Will you marry me?”
I smiled and through my arms around him. “Yes, but only if you promise me one thing.”
“What?”
“That we can name our first child, Fredrick Zachary.”
His eyes widened. “We’re going to have a son?”
“I think it’s only fitting that if you have stars, you also have a… son.”
Thane chuckled at my small attempt at humor. “Okay, wait a minute… you mentioned our first child. How many children are we going to have, besides Freddie and Emma?”
“Some things need to be kept as surprises, Thane.”
He ignored me. “Are you saying two, three, four?”
“I’m not saying anything.”
He picked me up out of the chair and threw me over his shoulder.
“What are you doing?” I squealed.
“All this talk about stars is reminding me that I need to introduce you to my own big-bang theory. I think we should take the next seven days and start working on it.”
I laughed. “Thane…”
He put me down and looked into my eyes.
“What?”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, babe. Forever.”
As I closed my eyes, I caught a glimpse of my mother and Sam, and they were both smiling.
The End
Thank you for reading this early-release of Tangled Fury. I apologize for grammar and errors and hope you didn’t find too many. Once it’s edited, the price will be going up to $3.99. If you were not able to get past the errors, feel free to get a $.99 refund through the ebook store. Otherwise, I do hope that you enjoyed the book and might even consider a review. It has been my longest, so far, and the most difficult to complete.
Thanks again and happy reading!
Tangled Fury Page 24
