Book IV of the UNC Series
Carter Blake has a bone-deep hatred for the world-and especially for the people in it. All he wants is to keep his head down, focus on school and basketball, and avoid the mess of human connection. After enduring years of...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I clutch her hand tightly in mine. More than the sight of Ricky and, surprisingly, Spencer being arrested, watching Addie run out of that house with no visible injuries and alive was an immense relief.
A knot of dread tightened in my stomach at the thought of finding her in that house. The cops wouldn't let me storm inside. SWAT and patrol were looking over floor plans and figuring out how to enter the house while waiting for a warrant. Every nerve in my body screamed with a mixture of anxiety and terror; it was nerve-wracking.
Luckily, I had Carsen by my side, who understood what I was going through. Not that Ryan has ever been kidnapped by a crazy stepfather and ex-boyfriend. But she had a crazy ex-boyfriend who Carsen didn't like.
He knew how agitated I was to get in there and find her. But just as the warrant came through, Addie raced out of the house with a wooden beam in her hand, blood soaking the right side of her thigh and wide, scared eyes. Thankfully, she told the paramedics on the scene that, aside from the head wound they inflicted and the bruises on her wrists, she wasn't actually injured.
And when Spencer was hauled out of there in handcuffs, blood dripping down his face and neck, I felt a wave of relief wash over me, confident it was his blood staining her clothes. I could almost taste the coppery tang of it.
The cops explained that Ricky and Spencer would face charges of assault and kidnapping, both first-degree felonies. A Pennsylvania judge could sentence them up to 20 years in jail and a $25,000 fine. They might not have been charged with threatening and legal fighting like Carsen hoped, but this is much better. Because there's no way Ricky and Spencer can get out of this charge. Not with all the evidence the police found inside.
After this, I never want to let Addie out of my sight. I was such an idiot for what I said, especially in hindsight.
The hum of hospital machinery fills the room as she lies in a hospital bed at the same hospital as Ryan, an IV drip feeding fluids into her arm while waiting for a nurse who'll take her to get a head CT scan. But she's being observed for a possible concussion. And I haven't taken my eyes off of her.
A soft rap echoes on the door, finally pulling my gaze from Addie; glancing up, I startle to find Andre standing in the entryway.
"Hey," he gives me a grim smile, which wanes as soon as his eyes drift to Addie.
A wave of shock washes over me, rendering me silent as he enters. The quiet thud of the door and the delicate rustle of petals he brings, which he places by Addie's bedside, are a jarring contrast to the turmoil in my chest.
"Hey," I mutter, elongating the single syllable.
"Your brother called me, thought you could use a friend," he shrugs, settling in the chair on the other side of Addie. He's wearing a black t-shirt under his thick winter jacket and joggers. He still wears his hair braided back in cornrows, the ends touching the nape of his neck.
