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Zane kicked Jackson again. “I’ll make sure he doesn’t do it again,” he said through clenched teeth.

“Get him up,” Nate said. The beating stopped. Nate and Zane grabbed onto Jackson’s arms and tried to lift him up. Jackson released me from his protective embrace, but I clung on.

“It’s okay, Addie,” he panted.

“No!” I cried and pulled him toward me, refusing to let go of his hand. “No, stop!” Nate kicked me in the face, the ball of his foot smashing my nose. Horrible pain shot through me as the fragile bones cracked, and hot blood poured out.

“Jackson!” I called and pushed myself up off the floor. Blood dripped down my throat. I reached for him.

“Don’t give up,” he said as Nate and Zane dragged him back. “Don’t ever give up.”

“I won’t!” I promised. Zane hooked his arms under Jackson’s and pulled him up the stairs. Jackson suddenly stopped struggling, making Zane stumble and almost lose his balance. Nate punched Jackson in the face. I rushed over, reaching for Jackson.

“Stop!” I screamed. Nate turned and slapped me. The added pain to my broken nose was too much. I crumbled to the ground.

Phoebe ran over and put her arm around me, both to offer comfort and to keep me from going after Jackson. I blinked back salty tears and carefully put my hand over my nose, trying to stop the blood. I looked up just in time to see Jackson’s feet disappear. I heard his body clunk against each step and the basement door slam shut.

I spit out blood. My body shuddered as a sob bubbled out of my mouth. Phoebe wrapped both arms around my shoulders and pulled me close. The full extent of the pain was starting to register and I began to feel sick.

“Jackson…” I began but trailed off, hiccupping another sob.

The back door slammed shut so hard it shook the house. Phoebe ran her hand over my hair. “Shhh,” she soothed but I began to cry even harder. My throat hurt with each ragged breath. Phoebe continued to stroke my hair until I got my breathing under control. I sniffled, inhaling blood. She gently pushed me away and got a towel. She pressed it to my face. I put my hand over hers and leaned forward, letting the blood drip out.#p#分页标题#e#

For the second time, a gunshot echoed across the frozen land.





CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX





I STARTLED AWAKE. My heart hammered, and sweat dripped down my back. The smell of gunpowder hung in the air, and my ears were still ringing from the shot. I squeezed my eyes shut and took a ragged breath. I threw the quilt from my sweaty body and pressed my hands against the cot.

I was in the basement. A gun hadn’t gone off. Not since several hours ago at least. I turned on my side and brought my legs to my chest, pressing against my broken heart.

“Addie?” Lily sat up. “Are you awake?”

“Yeah.” I sniffled. “I am.”

Her cot creaked. I listened to her bare feet smack against the basement floor as she walked over. “I miss him too.” She sank down next to me and put her hand on my shoulder. “I took him for granted. Like he was just there, bringing us food and doing our laundry. I never really talked to him. And now he’s gone.”

I didn’t bother to wipe away my tears. I repressed a sob and nodded. Gone. Jackson was gone. He died protecting me. Guilt wrapped around the heartache. I turned my face into my pillow and cried. Lily lay down next to me, her body squished against mine on the tiny cot.

“It’s not your fault,” she soothed.

“No.” I sharply inhaled and sat up. “It’s not my fault.” Anger burned inside me. “It’s their fault. They did it. They killed Jackson. And I swear, if it’s the last thing I do, I will kill them too.”

Lily’s green eyes widened. She sat and bit her bottom lip. “Okay.” She nodded.

I closed my puffy eyes, grateful she wasn’t going to tell me I was being irrational with grief. She picked up my quilt from the floor and wrapped it around my shoulders.

“You should sleep,” she yawned.

“I can’t sleep. I’ll have nightmares.” I shook my head. “But you can sleep. I’ll be okay.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. Phoebe should be back from work soon,” I added to help convince her. As nice as it was to have her comforting me, I wanted to be alone.

“Okay.” Her eyebrows pushed together and she nodded. “I’m sorry, Addie.”

“Me too.” I flopped back down and pulled the quilt over my head.

My throat hurt from the snot that dripped down it. I hated that my nose ran every time I cried. Jackson’s eyes flashed in my mine. My face crumpled. Sobs up bubbled from deep within me. Jackson’s life was full of pain and misery, and it had ended that way.