needle had been. The house was quiet, but the silence felt heavy, like the air be

dn't m

still in his police uniform, the heavy utility belt creakin

d, stepping closer. "Calista has been

tired to fight. "I didn't

ifted out, thick with tears. "Jeff, please. Don't be

by the shoulders, his fingers digging into her collarbones. "You cold-hea

but he was solid muscle. "You're all bl

e air, a detonator i

on roared. "Don't you dare

sh her away, to assert dominance. But Kasie was weak. Her legs were unsteady,

caught th

ng over. Her arms windmilled, grasping at empty air. She saw Jef

e was f

d, a ragdoll bouncing down the wooden stairs. Her head cracked against the banister.

taste of copper filling her mouth. The world wa

ozen. Calista peeked out of her door, her ey

t door s

him. He was wearing a charcoal overcoat that cost more than the en

looked up at him, her vision blurry, her body screaming in agony.

ng. "Clemence! Oh god, she... she just fel

"She slipped. She was yel

mth. They weren't the eyes of a man seeing his injured wife; t

ess laugh. "Your tricks ar

down. "Hurting yourself for attention? Did you t

curling his lip. "It's sa

ed the landing and pulled Calista into his arms, st

drifting down the stairs. The pain in her arm was nothing compared to the h

silent sound. Nobody wa