Billionaire Bachelors 6 ; Runaway Heiress(40)

Considering she didn't really know what she could handle or not handle, maybe he was right not to tell her. The thoughts just kept running over themselves through her mind, leaving her in a constant state of terror as she waited for Chad to come back.

The worst part was the image of that man staring at her. She didn't think she'd ever get the picture of those deadly looking eyes from her mind. The moment had seemed to stretch on forever, their eyes locked together. A shiver ran down her spine.

Bree shut her eyes and shook her head, trying to dispel the man from her mind. Chad wouldn't let anything happen to her. She knew that  –  she somehow had complete faith in the man  –  faith that he'd never let harm come to her  –  not if he could help it.

Finally, the shots stopped firing. She hadn't realized she'd been counting them until the midnight silence. Ten shots  –  ten agonizing booms in the night. Each time the gun fired, she'd clenched, praying one of those deadly bullets didn't hit Chad.

The silence was almost worse than the exploding sound of bullets. She at least knew something was happening, could pinpoint where the danger was when there were shots fired. In the silence, she strained her ears, trying to pick up any sound.

What were they doing?

Why wasn't anyone coming to reassure her?

Were they dead?

She was terrified and hanging on by only a very short thread. She didn't care what Chad had told her to do. If someone didn't come soon, she was leaving the bathroom. She'd rather face the masked man than sit in the dark, not knowing, weak with trepidation.

"Bree, it's me, Trenton. I'm going to open the bathroom door now. You can put down the gun, okay?" 

It took a couple of seconds for the words to process in her head. She stared at the doorknob as it slowly started to turn. Her arms never moved - the gun still aimed straight for whoever came through the opening.

"Bree, can you answer me. I'd prefer not to get shot," Trenton said with a nervous chuckle.

The door opened and he looked around the side of the door. She met his eyes; hers rounded in shock, the gun aimed toward him.

"Are you going to put the gun down, Bree? It's over. You're safe now."

She didn't move, didn't say a word, just looked at him blankly.

"Listen, sis, you're in shock. I need you to lower the gun. You don't even have to let go of it, just lower it. Then I'll come in and help you, okay?"

She couldn't make herself move. She told herself to do what he asked, but she couldn't make her muscles listen to her mind.

"Chad," Trenton called. He wasn't afraid of getting shot, but he didn't want Bree traumatized any more than she already was. She obviously wasn't coping, and if she did shoot at him, or actually hit him, she'd be filled with regret and sorrow.

Chad quickly came running through the house, arriving at the door and looking inside. Bree's eyes seemed to clear a fraction when she saw Chad standing there.

"It's okay, baby. I'm going to come in now, and I'd really appreciate it if you didn't shoot me," Chad said as if he were talking to a child. He slowly stepped into the bathroom and started walking to her. He stayed close to the wall, trying to keep out of range of the weapon, just in case her finger twitched and she accidentally shot it.

Upon reaching her, he quickly sat down. She turned her head and made eye contact with him, her body beginning to tremble in earnest.

"I'm going to take the gun now, okay?" he asked, reaching up and gently releasing her fingers from the weapon, sliding the gun across the floor to Trenton, who stood back and watched.

As soon as the weapon was taken away, her arms dropped and tears poured from her eyes.

"It's okay, we're all okay," Chad reassured her as he pulled her onto his lap and started rocking her. "You're fine, Bree. Your family is here, there's no sign of the shooter."

She fell against him as the shock turned into fear and she rocked in his arms. Her own arms wound around his neck and he continued to rock her, running his fingers through her hair, giving her time to cry out her fear and confusion.

Finally, Chad stood with her cradled in his arms and walked from the bathroom. Trenton had turned on the house lights, casting the eerie shadows away. Chad went straight to his room, where he gently laid her on his bed, continually whispering soothing words in her ear.

"We'll make sure the area is secure," Trenton said. It was obvious Chad couldn't leave Bree right then. "The doctor is on his way."

The doctor showed up within a half hour and gave Bree a sleeping aid. Chad held her in his arms until the medicine did its job and she fell asleep. He let Trenton and Mark lock up the place, neither of them would leave. They'd make sure the house was safe while he made sure Bree was alright. He didn't want her to wake alone  –  not after the night she'd had.