Come Back for Me (Arrowood Brothers #1)(22)

“Please help her, Connor,” Hadley pleads, and I want nothing more than to give her what she asks.

This kid has somehow felt safe enough to come to me for help. I can’t let her down, no matter what.

“I’m going now. Remember to call and don’t let anyone but me, your mom, or Sheriff Mendoza in.” I remind her again. I want to specifically tell her not to let her father in, but she’s terrified enough.

“I promise.”

With that, I pull her in for a quick hug, grab my gun out of the entry table, and run.

My legs don’t stop. I don’t think about anything other than getting to her . . . fast. I can’t stop, slow, or falter. I know that taking the road might be the easiest, but cutting across the field is faster, so that’s what I do.

I leap over the fence, moving at a pace I haven’t set in a long time. During my last deployment, I was restricted from running, but right now, nothing hurts. I’m running on pure adrenaline and the need to get to Ellie.

In my gut, I knew something wasn’t right. If that son of a bitch hurt Hadley that day, I’ll kill him. I have to stop myself from going down that line of thinking because I’m already trying to rein my anger in that he’s hurt Ellie.

As I move across the wet grass, I think about that night. I remember how she felt so secure in my arms. I’ve held that memory for so long that the idea of that being all we’d ever have is killing me. Ellie means something to me, whether it’s reciprocated or not, she’s been my talisman.

I’ve dreamed of her so many times and then replayed the memory of that night just to have her close again.

I’ve created hundreds of different scenarios for what would have happened if I’d only woken up earlier, of how the last eight years of my life would have played out.

My heart is racing as the light from the house in front of me cuts through the night. I move even quicker, knowing that each second that passes could mean anything.

I pull my gun out, keeping it down by my side as I move. The ranch-style house should make it easier for me to gain access through a window if I have to. There is a small porch on the front, and the bay window is bright with light from inside. That’s most likely where they are. I do a fast assessment of the house, trying to determine the best way in. It’s eerily quiet, the moon overhead is bright, giving me enough light to see but not be seen.

I step closer and see the curtain move in the front.

I’m hoping the sheriff is close, but it’s Sugarloaf, so I’m not overly hopeful, and there’s not a chance in hell I’m waiting for them to show up before I go in.

“Kevin.” I hear a mumble coming through the window. “Don’t do this.”

Ellie’s voice sounds broken and raspy. Not at all like the beautiful, sweet and almost song-like quality that it was earlier.

“Do you think I want my wife to leave me? I’m the man who has supported you, loved you, provided a life for you, and then I wake up to find you stealing my daughter?”

I look through the window and see her lying on the floor in front of the fireplace as he walks around the room. I survey the area, deciding the front door is the best entry to get to her quickly.

“I was bringing her somewhere safe,” she tries to yell, but her arm is supporting her chest, and it looks as if she can barely draw a full breath. “You hit me for the last time.”

The motherfucker hurt her.

Red fills my vision, and all my thoughtful planning goes out the window.

I move to the front of the house, tuck my gun in my waistband, and kick the door open so hard that the wood splinters. I walk forward, no longer giving a shit about anything other than the bastard who raised his hand to a woman.

“What the fuck?” He stumbles back and then comes forward. “Came to save your whore?”

“I heard some noise, wanted to see what’s going on over here.”

He shakes his head. We both know I couldn’t hear a damn thing almost a mile down the road, but I really don’t give a shit about what he thinks. I care about the woman on the floor and the little girl at my house who is scared out of her mind.

Because of this scumbag.

“Get out of my house.”

“I’d really like to, but I have a strict rule about men who hit people smaller than them.” I step closer, making a fist and releasing it. “You see, I think a real man would pick on someone his own size, you know?”

“Fuck off.”

“How about you man up to me? I bet that would make you feel more like a man than hitting a woman would.”

I circle him, stalking my prey, ready to pounce the second I see that Ellie is out of the way.

However, the blue and red headlights fill the room, and I see the panic in his eyes.

Kevin moves to the left as if to bolt down the hallway and probably out a back door, but I lunge for him. My arms wrap around his body, and I let momentum and gravity pull us both to the floor. He lands a punch to the side of my face, and I swing back, a loud thwack echoing around me.

That’s all there is time for before hands are yanking me back. “Let him go, son. I’ll take it from here,” Sheriff Mendoza says.

He grabs Kevin, and I rush over to Ellie, who is sitting huddled on the floor. “Are you okay?”

She shakes her head.

“We need to get you to the hospital.”