“Why?” Roxie asked. She was hoping someone would pass by, someone would see something. Her curtains were open. She backed her way into the living room, praying a neighbor was walking their dog. He seemed oblivious to what she was doing. That was good. He was focused only on her. Even if he got her, she would scream and someone would come; someone would save her niece.
“She’s a slut who had to die,” he said as he cocked his head to the side. He was speaking in a matter-of-fact way, as if it were his duty to kill.
“Please don’t hurt Lily,” Roxie begged.
“What will you do for me to ensure I don’t?” he asked with evil delight.
“Anything,” Roxie said. “Let’s leave the house. You can take me.” She opened her arms, showing him she had nothing. She was his to do with as he pleased.
His lips turned up even more as he eyed her from head to toe.
“I like this house,” he told her. “You even left me a key to get in. That was so very nice of you.”
Roxie wanted to kick her own ass now. She knew a locked door wouldn’t have stopped a man like this, but if she hadn’t left the key out, then maybe she would have had a clue he was in the place; maybe she could have gotten away. If she’d listened to her instinct when she’d felt nervous at walking in the house, then maybe Lily wouldn’t be in mortal danger right now. This was in her hands now.
“Please, just take me,” she said, unable to control her tears now.
“Don’t move,” he commanded, his voice dropping, not a trace of humor there anymore.
Her body shook as he stepped toward her. She didn’t try to run. She wouldn’t leave this man alone with Lily. She couldn’t. He came and stood before her and ran the tip of his blade down her neck, scratching the skin. She didn’t make a sound.
He ran the blade down the V of her robe and nicked the top of her breast. She continued to shake, but she knew she was no match for this man.
“Open your robe,” he said, his voice husky as he gazed at her chest.
Roxie was definitely going to be sick. There was no doubt about it. She was about to get raped and murdered. She couldn’t think of a worse way to go. Her eyes burning, she reached for the sash of her robe. Maybe, just maybe, she could use the robe to grab the deadly knife and then fight him. Yes, he could overpower her, but if he wasn’t holding the knife, she could scream and pray her neighbors heard.
Just as she was beginning to undo the robe, her front door was smashed open against the wall, the wood shattering with the force. Roxie flew backward as someone yanked her arm and tossed her behind, causing her to land with a hard thump against her couch. Her head slammed against the cushioned armrest, and she saw spots of color for a moment and heard a thunderous roar.
Somewhere in the middle of the chaos, she heard Lily scream, and all she could think of was her niece. She jumped from the couch and ran to her niece, who was now standing in the hallway. She scooped her into her arms and ran for the front door.
She felt fingers try to grip her ankle, but she managed to slip free and ran outside, not stopping as she took off down the road. She heard sirens in the distance and prayed they were coming to her. And they did.
She made it a block down the street, Lily screaming at the top of her lungs, when the first police car screeched around the corner. It headed straight to her house. Another car shot past her, and then one stopped right in front of her. She stopped, shaking where she stood as a man climbed from the car, his hand on his weapon as he approached.
“Ma’am, are you okay?” he asked as he looked around.
She opened her mouth but couldn’t speak. The fear was so real, so great.
“Ma’am, the ambulance is on the way. Do you need me to take the child?”
Roxie’s eyes were wide; she was shaking. She knew she was in shock, and she probably should release Lily, but she couldn’t loosen her grip. Lily’s head was buried in her shoulder as she uncontrollably sobbed.
“It’s okay, Roxie. I’m here. It’s okay.”
Roxie turned and found Kian beside her. The officer knew him and seemed to relax. “Is the house secure, Kian?” he asked.
“It’s secure. They have the bastard,” Kian said. “I’ve got Roxie.”
The officer nodded, climbed into his car, and drove down to her house.
“Let me take Lily before you fall to the ground,” Kian said, his voice soothing. His shirt was ripped, and there was blood oozing from his arm, but he was so calm.
“It’s okay, Roxie, let me take Lily,” he said again.
“I c-can’t,” she finally managed to say on a terrified sob.
“Okay, I understand,” he told her. “Let’s go back to the house,” he suggested, and terror-filled shakes racked her body.
“Okay, we’ll just sit right here,” he compromised.
She allowed him to help her to the ground. Her neighbors were all out of their houses, looking to see what all the commotion was about, and someone placed a blanket over her and Lily. Kian sat next to her, his arm around her.
They didn’t speak. They just sat there as he rubbed her shoulder. Soon the ambulance showed up, and she still couldn’t release Lily, not even when she was placed on a stretcher and lifted inside the ambulance. She was still in fight-or-flight mode, and all she knew was that she had to save her niece. She must save her niece—her daughter. Lily was her daughter now. She was hers, and she had to save her.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
There were times in a man’s life when basic instinct was all that kept you alive. There were times when you shut off everything except adrenaline and rage. When Kian had pulled up to Roxie’s house, intent on giving her a piece of his mind for leaving, he’d realized exactly what that meant.
Her curtains were open, and a man was standing in front of her holding a knife. He’d taken about five seconds to call 911, to tell them a murder was about to happen, then he’d left his phone on, dropped on the front seat of his pickup truck, and he’d charged the front door.
In his rage, he’d kicked it in without a moment’s hesitation, and then he’d lunged. He’d had the advantage on the attacker, as he’d come out of nowhere, but the man had been big, and he’d managed to get a couple of swipes of his blade into Kian. But there had been no way Kian was allowing that man to harm his family.
He’d subdued the man, and he’d seriously planned on ending his life so he could never be a threat to anyone again, but the cops showed up damn fast when he didn’t want them to. Before he could strangle the man, he’d been pulled off him. It hadn’t taken the cops, who just so happened to be family friends, to figure out who the attacker was in the situation. As soon as they had the man cuffed and secured in the police car, Kian had found Roxie. She was in shock and holding on to Lily for dear life.
And he loved her. She’d done everything within her power to save their daughter. He had been able to tell what was happening when he’d glanced in that window, and he knew she was trying to keep the man from Lily. Kian couldn’t love her any more than he already did.
She would sacrifice herself for Lily, and that was something a lot of women couldn’t say or wouldn’t do. There were many people out there who would say that they would die for those they loved. But Kian knew they were empty words. Most people had a basic survival instinct, and when it came down to it, they wouldn’t make the ultimate sacrifice.