Page 167 of Return Policy

“Seth,” Will says calmly as the sound of him cocking the gun echoes off every inch of the room. “Get thehellout of my house.”

Will steps back from the door frame, without lowering the gun. Seth stumbles out, still gasping for air, eyes glued on Will, before turning toward the stairs and running down them. Will follows him and as soon as they’re out of my line of sight, I spin around to Sophia, who’s on the floor holding herself, staring at the wall. I rush over to her and bend down.

“Baby, are you okay?” She blinks without so much as a glance in my direction. I run my fingers over her skin, searching frantically for any markings and thankfully, finding none. “Soph?” I turn her eyes to meet mine, and they’re completely vacant. Sliding my arms around her back and legs, I scoop her up. She clings to me as I carry her over to the bed, laying her down gently. I bring the cover over her and drop to my knees next to the bed while rubbing her head.

God, how did we get here?

One minute she was telling me she loves me and sleeping peacefully in my arms, the next I was seconds from justifiably murdering her ex. This has all gotten out of hand. Something has to change.

“We have to tell your dad what’s going on.”

Her eyes go wide. “I—” She shakes her head. “I can’t.”

I place my hand on her cheek. “Sweetheart, he needs to know…” I exhale a heavy breath. “He needs to knoweverything. It’s the only way we can protect you.”

Her green, glassy eyes bore into mine, and she blinks a few times. “I know.” Her tone is low, empty, and far away. “Can you do it?”

“Don’t you think this is something you should do, baby?”

She looks away, and her lower lip quivers. “Please.”

The desperation in her tone is gut-wrenching, and I know there’s no way I can deny her. “Okay, I’ll be right back.”

She nods weakly and rolls away from me, curling into a ball. I pull the blanket over her shoulders and plant a soft kiss on her head. Sophia’s wearing my shirt, so I have to go down shirtless, which isn’t ideal to talk to her dad, but it’s the only choice I have.

I take faltering steps into the kitchen, eyes snagging on the shotgun resting on the counter pointed straight towards me. Will folds his arms over his chest, letting out a heavy exhale. “I want to be mad at you for being in my daughter’s room half naked without my knowledge… but I’m glad you were here.” I nod. “You wanna tell me what the hell just happened?”

I fill Will in on everything, from the accident to Seth visiting Sophia at Thanksgiving.

“And there’s something else you should see…” I tell him, pulling up the photos we took of Sophia’s neck.

Will takes my phone and stares down at it. He places a hand over his mouth as he swipes through them, and a tear drips down his face. His glossy, furious eyes connect with mine. “You should have told me about this sooner. We could have protected her. Tonight shouldn’t have happened.”

A mountain of guilt the size of Mt. Kilimanjaro settles in my stomach. “I know… She’s been staying with me on campus, so I thought she was safe. She asked me not to tell anyone, and I didn’t want to betray her trust.”

“And how well did that work out?” His jaw clenches, and my eyes burn.

“You’re right… I should have come to you.” I blink back angry tears. “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t want your apology,” he snaps. “I want you to care more about my daughter’s safety than you do about having her in your bed.”

Anger brews at his insinuation, and I shove it down. “Sir, Iloveyour daughter.”

“If I ever find out you gambled her safety again…” His eyes flick down to the shotgun and back to mine, and a shiver runs down my spine.

“I won’t.” I swallow hard. “Her safety is, and always has been, my number one concern… But what can we do? How can we protect her? He won’t leave her alone.”

“Well, there’s not much we can do about the accident or the…” He clears his throat and takes a deep breath, physically repressing his anger. “The choking. But we can get a restraining order against him so he can’t come near Sophia again.”

“Really? Do you think it would stick?” I ask hopefully.

“Yeah, it’s enough. Him harassing her, along with breaking and entering, and the… photos you showed me of her neck. It’ll stick. And now you and I are a witness to that abuse.” He tilts his head and narrows his eyes. “If you’re willing to be a witness?”

“Hell yeah.” I nod. “Anything you need.”

“You wanna call Mark or should I?” he asks, and all I can think about is that I can’t stand to be apart from Sophia a moment longer.

“I think it would be more effective coming from you, but you can tell him to call me if he needs anything.”

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