Page 100 of Let Me In

And I stand.

The floor feels too steady beneath me. My body too calm. But inside, something shifts, cold and final. Like a switch being flipped. Like the moment before a fuse catches flame.

I move slow. Deliberate. Not a sound wasted.

Because it’s not a question anymore.

It’s not a debate.

I’m going to get her.

Now.

And she’s not staying in that house another goddamned night.

Not after that.

Not while I’m still breathing.

She belongs somewhere safe. Somewhere quiet. Somewhere that feels like mine. Not just in proximity—but in presence, in protection. She should be sleeping in a bed I’ve made, wrapped in a blanket I’ve laid out, with the softest damn light I can find warming the corners of the room. Where I can keep her close. Keep her safe.

Where nothing and no one gets through unless I open the door myself.

22

EMMY

I didn’t meanto answer.

My hands were shaking too hard—I just wanted to silence it. Just wanted the ringing to stop. But I must’ve hit the wrong side of the screen. My stomach drops, a cold shock spreading through my limbs like I’ve been plunged into ice. The phone trembles slightly in my hand, breath snagging high in my chest.

Because the second I shut the bedroom door behind me, I realize the line is open. And that I can still hear the echo of my father’s voice—in Cal’s ear.

God.

I sink onto the edge of the bed, my breath coming too fast.

Heheard.

I fumble to end the call, then immediately dial back.

It barely rings once before he picks up.

“Emmy,” he says. Not gentle, not harsh. Just solid.

“I’m okay,” I rush out. “It’s fine. He’s just—he gets like that sometimes, it’s loud, but he doesn’t mean—”

“Don’t,” Cal says. Soft, but firm. It’s the kind of voice that sinks into my skin, grounding me. Like I could root myself in that sound and never move again.

“I didn’t want you to worry,” I whisper.

“I’m coming to get you,” he says. No hesitation.

It feels like my heart stops. Everything stops.

“Cal—wait, please. You don’t have to do that. I don’t want to be a problem. I’ve got the dogs, and it’s late, and I’ll be okay, I always—”

His voice breaks in.

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