Page 91 of The Two Last Moments

“I won’t.”

“Then I’ll hurt you again when you least expect it. But I’ll take out your firefighter too, like I tried to do the night I first chased you here to West Oaks. I’ll run him down and leave him nothing but a smear on the—”

I don’t know where the courage comes from, but suddenly it’s there, surging up inside of me. Pure rage. Danny has protected me, cared for me, and damn it, I will do anything to protecthim. I won’t let anyone hurt Danny or Nina.

I slam my head backward into Z’s face.

Z screams. For several seconds, time moves in slow motion. I turn toward him. I have to see him. I have toknow. But his hands are covering his face, and blood is gushing from his nose. He’s stumbling backward into the hedges.

So I decide to get the heck out of there.

I run for the front of the house, screaming at the top of my lungs.

I dash up the porch steps. The front door flies open, and both Danny and Matteo race out of the house.

I collide with Danny’s open arms. “Lark, what—”

“It’s my brother! He’s here!” I point at the hedge where Z just disappeared through the gap, fleeing to the next-door neighbor’s property.

“Matteo, stay with her,” Danny shouts.

Then he takes off. My arms are still outstretched, reaching out for him, but he’s gone.

32

Ipush through the hedge, ignoring the scratches the rough branches leave on my skin, and tear across the next property. The neighbor’s yard is dappled in sun and shadow.

There. I see a man’s back as he flees. Dark clothes, dark brown hair. A sturdy build. He doesn’t pause or hesitate. The man shoves his way through another set of hedges.

I race after him. Branches snag on my clothes. I come out on a street that runs perpendicular to mine. My head swivels as I search up and down for the guy who’s running.

But he’s gone. Fucking vanished into thin air.

I tug my phone out and call the police. “I’m Danny Bradley, West Oaks FD. A man attacked my girlfriend. He tried to kill her before. He’s fleeing on foot as we speak.” I give the dispatcher the cross streets and my address, plus my best attempt at a description of Z.

If West Oaks PD moves fast, they’ll be able to set up a perimeter and catch some sign of him. If he’s got a car parked in the vicinity, hopefully they’ll spot him.

After I hang up, I bellow a curse, slamming the side of my fist into the nearest tree trunk.

I can’t believe Z was here. Right here in Nina’s neighborhood. Outside her home. And I had no clue. I don’t know what exactly he did to Lark, if she just saw him and ran or if it was worse. But rabid, virulent fury is pouring through my veins like a toxin.

I almost lost Nina today.

And then, Lark.

I’d ask how this day could get any worse, but that dumbass question answers itself. If I had lost them, it would’ve beenmy fault.

The two people I love most in this world, and I didn’t protect them.

I smack my fist into the tree trunk again. Blood wells from cuts across my knuckles. I allow myself five seconds of feeling the tsunami of shit that almost came down on me today.Fuck.

Then I stop, panting as I catch my breath.

I head back to the house. My teeth grit as I jog, taking the sidewalk this time.

Lark is on the porch with Matteo, hugging her elbows. She stands when she sees me. “Anything?”

“He’s gone. West Oaks PD is on their way.” I mount the steps, and Lark walks into my open arms. I run my hands over her, searching for anything that might be wrong. “You’re okay? Did he hurt you?”

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