Chapter One Hundred and Eleven
Mason sat on the bottom stair and stared out at nothing. The house was quiet and dark. Carey had been sedated after John took her home. She’d been beside herself with grief. Mason himself didn’t feel anything except numb.
Grace’s cries still rang in his ears and Kelley had left an hour ago, too afraid to leave him alone. The numbness was spreading through his entire body and seeping into his soul. Grace was his whole life, the reason he got up in the mornings, she was his heart beat.
Mason cocked his head to the side as he heard a car pull up in the street, a car door closed and then another and he shook his head. He didn’t want to see anyone and he had a pretty good idea that it was Kelley that had come back, probably with Connor or Lee.
A gruff curse and then his doorbell rang. Mason looked at the door, not wanting to open it. A loud bang on the door. “Mason!” It wasn’t Kelley or Lee, they had keys and they wouldn’t knock. This was a voice he knew but couldn’t place immediately.
Mason pulled the door open and staggered back as he looked at Kirk Goodwin with Andrea in his arms. He looked worried and scared and he pushed past Mason, his breathing erratic.
“Help me, Mason!”
Mason stood as if frozen as Kirk swept past him into the living room and placed Andrea on the couch. She was unconscious and Kirk appeared in front of him again. He took Mason by the shoulders and shook him.
“Mason! Get a grip!”
Kirk sighed loudly and pulled his arm back. The punch landed on Mason’s jaw and he staggered backwards. He shook his head and looked at Kirk, a look of savage rage settling in his eyes.
“What the fuck happened to her?”
“I can’t take her to the hospital, Mason, they’ll know it was me and they’ll just find her again. You have to get her help. They beat her and … and I think they raped her. You have to help her, Mason.”
Mason moved to the living room and he knelt next to Andrea, her face swollen and bruised, his hand went to her head and she groaned. “Ma … Mason.” Her voice was rough and he briefly closed his eyes as he swallowed the emotion away.
“I’m here, Andrea … I’ve got you.”
“Grace …”
“Mason, I don’t know exactly what they did to her but I heard her screams, there might be internal damage from the beatings, you need to get her medical help.”
“Get my phone from the kitchen, call Carey and tell her to bring her black bag.”
Kirk moved through the dark house and the light in the kitchen went on. Mason vaguely heard Kirk on the phone as he kept stroking Andrea’s hair. The hospital would call the police and Andrea wouldn’t say a word, he knew she wouldn’t.
“I spoke to someone named John, he said they’re on their way.”
What felt like hours later the front door opened and Mason could breathe easier. Carey, John and Kelley with Milana filed into the house. Kelley looked worriedly at Mason and then his gaze went to Kirk and finally to Andrea on the couch.
“What the fuck, Mase?”
Carey switched the light of the living room on and gasped audibly. She turned to John and asked for boiled water and clean towels, a tray and Mason’s first aid kit as well. John left them and Milana stood in shock.
“Ki .. K.. Kirk.”
Mason watched as Kirk knelt next to her and took her hand in his. “I’m so sorry, Andrea. I didn’t know what they’d do.”
Mason grabbed him by his shirt and slammed his back against the wall with force. The air left Kirk’s lungs and he gulped air as Mason’s grip only tightened. “Did you take her?”
“Mason …”
Mason slammed his back against the wall again. “Did you take her, Kirk? Did you give her to Marcus?”
“Kelley, we need to move her to a bed. It’ll be easier to treat her wounds. Can we get some equipment in here?”
“Make me a list, Carey, I’ll get everything you need.”
Kelley moved to the couch and picked Andrea up as Mason glared at Kirk, who remained stubbornly silent. He stopped in the doorway and looked at Mason. “Take him to the basement if he doesn’t want to talk. Call Connor, he’ll take over so you can stay here.”
Kelley walked up the stairs with Andrea and placed her gently on the bed in the spare room. Carey sat down on the edge and started to unpack her equipment. Kelley’s phone pinged and he looked at the list that Carey had sent him.
“I’ll get started on these. Let me know the minute you think we need to take her to the hospital. I refuse to let her be a victim any further. They’ve gone too far this time.”
“This needs to end, Kelley, who else has to get hurt because of this vendetta?”
Kelley didn’t answer her and walked out of the room without saying a word. In the living room he saw Connor was already there and he had handcuffed Kirk. “I’ll call you.”
“We need information, Connor.”
Connor nodded his head and led Kirk out of the house. Mason was sitting on the couch with his hands in his hair. Kelley stared at the blood on the couch and he gritted his teeth. “Lee’s not here?”
Mason shook his head. “I haven’t heard from him since this morning.”
Kelley frowned and pulled his phone out. The emergency call had gone out to all of them at the same time. Carey had activated it and Kelley hadn’t wasted any time in getting to Mason’s house. He couldn’t think that Lee would ignore the call.
Lee’s phone rang and rang until it finally went to voicemail and Kelley felt the unease creep in. “It’s not like Lee not to answer.”
“Go, Kelley.”
Kelley nodded his head once and walked out of the house. He slid behind the steering wheel of his Escalade and pulled away from the curb.
