No answer.
He went back on the move.
She wasn’t in her bedroom. She wasn’t in any bathrooms.
His temper spiked along with his concern as he instigated a room by room search of the house, repeatedly calling her name.
He found her in her informal family room where she watched television. He’d not seen her in there because the room was dark, the curtains drawn, and she was at the far end of the room.
Having pulled a curtain back, she was standing in it, her back to the door of the room. He almost didn’t see her even stepping into the room to look for her.
He felt no relief due to the fact she didn’t even twitch when he joined her in the room and she had to have heard him moving around and shouting her fucking name.
“Jesus, Liv, what the fuck?” he bit out as he moved to a lamp on a table by the couch and switched it on to light the dim room. “Tweaked as all fuck, been callin’ you—”
She turned.
He stopped dead as rage seared through him.
“Jesus, fuck,” he whispered and took the last distance to her in two long strides.
In that time, she slid out from the curtain, away from the window and away from him.
Nick stopped moving toward her, instead he turned with her movements.
First things first.
“Who did that to your face?” he growled.
“Dad,” she answered emotionlessly.
He ignored the smoldering burn of fury.
Again, first things first, take care of his girl.
“You should have somethin’ on it. You got frozen peas?” he asked.
“It’s perfectly fine.”
He stared at her.
It was not fine. The corner of her left eye was blood red with burst blood vessels, her temple purpled angrily, the cheekbone under swelling and shoving up the bottom of her eye.
With some effort, he controlled his anger and ordered, “Come here. I want a better look at it.”
“Actually, if you don’t mind, it’d be helpful if you left.”
With those words, her demeanor finally penetrated.
Yeah, Liv not communicating…
Seriously fucking more than a little troubling.
“Babe—” he began as he started toward her.
“Though, before you go, you should know that they’re aware of your desire to have vengeance for your dead girlfriend so you should be careful. Georgia is dealing with a number of things and I’m told it’s highly likely she’ll also be dealing with that.”
And at those words, Nick stopped dead again, his gut twisting and his heart slamming against his ribs.