Page 42 of Thunder's Reckoning
Felt like where I belonged was upstairs. With a woman fightin’ to breathe through ghosts, and me fool enough to think I could help.
***
I TOOK THEstairs two at a time. Didn’t even think about it, just moved. Somethin’ in the night had my skin pulled tight, like a storm gatherin’ just past the treeline.
The hallway was dark. Too quiet. The kind of stillness that makes you hesitate before breathin’ too deep.
I rounded the corner, expectin’ to see the bedroom door cracked open like I’d left it. It wasn’t. It was wide open. Empty.
My stomach dropped.
Then I saw her.
Sable was sittin’ on the floor by the front door, knees drawn up, arms wrapped around herself like she was tryin’ to hold all the broken pieces inside. Her eyes were locked on nothin’, lips pressed tight, tears slidin’ down steady and silent.
No sound. No cryin’. Just heartbreak that leaked no matter how hard she tried to dam it up.
“Hey,” I said softly, kneelin’ in front of her. “You okay?”
Stupid question. I knew the answer before I asked.
She flinched when my hand touched her arm, but she didn’t pull back. Her breath hitched once, and then her eyes finally found mine.
“It’s always the night,” she whispered. “I still feel myself walking down that hall to kneel at his feet.”
My jaw locked, but my voice stayed calm. “There’s no one comin’ through that door, Sable. Not while I’m breathin’.”
Her lip trembled, just once, before she exhaled like she’d been holdin’ that breath for days. I shifted closer, slid my hands up to her face, thumbs brushin’ tears she hadn’t even realized fell.
She looked at me like she couldn’t understand why I was still here, why I hadn’t run for the hills yet. Truth was, I couldn’t.
“You’re safe,” I murmured. “Right here. With me.”
Her eyes fluttered shut, not all the way, just enough to let the guard drop half a second. That was all it took.
I leaned in, slow, givin’ her every chance to stop me.
She didn’t.
Her lips met mine soft, hesitant, like she was learnin’ what it meant to be kissed without pain. And I kissed her like breath itself, like she wasn’t a burden, wasn’t a problem to fix, but a woman who’d survived hell and was still worth lovin’.
Her fingers curled in the front of my cut. Just enough to hold me there. God, I could’ve stayed in that moment for hours.
Then I heard it.
A sound outside. Sharp. Like a twig crackin’ under a boot.
Instinct slammed through me. I pulled back, heart poundin’, and pushed to my feet.
“Stay here,” I told her, my voice firm but soft. “Don’t open that door for nobody but me.”
Her eyes were wide, but she nodded.
I slipped my .45 from under my cut, thumbin’ the safety off as I moved. Quiet. Careful. I eased out the door, lettin’ it click behind me.
The night was still. Too still. The woods crouched heavy and dark. No crickets. No owls. Just silence.
But I knew better.
