the wind howling against the floor-to-ceilin

, my eyes fixed on the shado

he door han

that didn't matter;

rain and expensive scotch floo

in here?" he ask

," I

bed and sat down, the mattre

heavy hand

fire. Now, it felt like a

thumb tracing a possessive line along my side

awed its way out of my t

m," he said. "I don't

zzling the sensiti

of his beard sc

nt r

rpse he was tryi

stop,"

murmured against my s

y wrists to

viol

fir

essi

he sire

Red

hattering the tension and s

e fr

tly, his demeanor shi

t plane down," he said, scanning the screen. "

ing his shirt with

from husband to

o to the Com

e doorway, wrapped i

sness. "I heard the siren. Is it the ship

to check,"

id, stepping forward. "I can co

gerous,"

she said, lifting

id. "Get dressed

at me one

storm is getting worse. The shut

shutters three months ago,

," he said

l

ook

house that was

where the gale was alre

teel shutter closed, but th

y," I whispe

gusted to sevent

ng crack, the

ard like shrapnel,

sucked the air rig

avy oak bookcase

urn

tip

on, a towering shado

ed to

sn't fas

ight h

RA

ight

one snap lik

cre

o the floor, crushing me

filled my mouth,

tower on the roof cras

d down, bury

a

ding pain radia

a differ

ing agony in m

s mixing with the dust

ed as it went

n weeks

't tol

rprise him for

but the screen was sha

I saw

nt

d com

is flashlight beam cutting

!" he

an t

the heavy wood, his

e grunted. "

ure eased

ped f

oked out. "Th

his earpie

cratched her arm on the door handle. She's fainting at the sigh

e fr

oked

under

edi

asked the earpiece, disbel

ing, Boss. She won't

ked down

red, his face hardening. "You're a

pered, reaching

s voice cold. "Sofia is key to the media na

o of the

back down on me w

cre

, but he tu

r

e girl with

nd his unborn chil

shlight fade away

s al

m liquid pooling

sn't

as b

my fing

pressed my bloody finger

s of the divorce la

darkness