argue.
“Hate is a very strong word, Dani,” he chastises.
“Well, I think it fits in this case.”
Another knock comes at the door and Samson pushes it all the way open before stepping in.
“The whole house is secured, Sheriff. We’ve checked every entry point on the premises. Nobody’s getting in.” I mock him the whole time he’s talking. “I even put a bowl of candy out on the front step so that no one has to come to the door.”
“Well, that’s just great. I see you’ve thought of everything,” I say, rolling my eyes. “Hey, Dad? Where do you keep those little gold star stickers? I think Samson deserves one on his badge.”
“Dani, that’s enough,” my dad says, glaring at me.
Samson just gives me a smug smile and turns his attention back to my father.
“Good work, Samson. I should be back in a little while. And Dani,” he begins while turning to face me, “Samson is here to protect you. Try to get along, please?” He gives me a kiss on the forehead accompanied by a hug.
“All right, fine,” I mutter, sending a scowl to Samson over my dad’s shoulder.
As they leave, I give a quick hug to Phoebe and turn my focus to Samson while sitting heavily on the bed. “I believe we’re finished here. Go protect the house,” I order.
“Dani, I know we’ve always kind of butted heads over the years, but I want to call a temporary truce,” he announces.
“I’m listening,” I say, crossing my arms over my chest and waiting for him to continue.
“I need you to trust me in order for me to protect you. If we keep up this bickering between us, it could cause complications. I know you don’t like me, but you don’t have to for me to protect you. You just need to trust me.”
Are my ears deceiving me? Is this Samson actually acting like a human being for once? I’ve never seen this side to him before. Actually, I never thought he had this in him.
I rise from my bed and walk over to him. Extending my hand, I say, “Truce.” He smiles as he shakes my hand. “But after all this is over, the bickering will resume, got it?”
He laughs. “Understood.”
I’ve been cooped up in my room for two hours now. My phone sits on the desk while I snuggle up with my pillows on the bed. I’m anticipating any minute that it will notify me of the next step in Unknown’s plan. He did say it wasn’t over, after all.
The house is quiet except for the periodic shuffling I hear downstairs. I begin to wonder where my father is. Phoebe only lives about five minutes away, and it shouldn’t have taken Miller this long to get to her house to relieve my dad of his duties. I decide to go ask one of the boys downstairs if they’ve heard from him.
I pull myself from the bed and put on my slippers. Opening the door, I make my way over to the banister and look out over it into the foyer.
“Hey, Samson? Have you heard from my dad yet?” I ask, but get no response. My voice echoes through the house, giving me the chills. “Hey, Samson?”
When there’s still no answer, I run back into my bedroom and grab the butcher knife I put under the mattress. I take my cell from the desk and dial my dad’s phone. It doesn’t ring. It just goes straight to voicemail. Dammit. I try again with the same result. Before I even have a chance to call Phoebe, the phone vibrates in my hand.
Buzz…Buzz…
I lay it back on the desk when I see a text from Unknown blinking back at me. I don’t want to look at it, and decide to head for the doorway.
Buzz…Buzz…
“Damn you,” I murmur when I turn around and move back toward the desk to retrieve the phone. Picking it up, my finger shakes visibly when it swipes to unlock the screen. There are two texts:
Everything has come full circle, and now we’ve reached your end. Are you ready, Dani?
At this point I don’t even want to read the next message. I’m absolutely terrified, but I scroll down a bit to see the rest:
I have someone who wants to talk to you.
There’s a picture attached to the message. Pressing on it, I gasp. It’s a picture of Phoebe…teary-eyed, bloodied, tied up, and gagged. Another text comes through and I scroll down.
To save her, you have to find us. Need a